Dragon Swordswoman(MAN!)
by tarious123
Summary: When I think of reincarnation, being transported to the world of One Piece is the last thing I would think of. And why am I a girl! And what do you mean you're a dragon! A SI One Piece story with a twist! Warning: Mature Themes and possible cursing. And maybe some yuri action. (Discontinued, sadly. Reboot coming soon)
1. Ch 1:I like Isekai story, but not this!

**Chapter 1: I like Isekai story, but not this!**

I always have a liking with otherworld-summoning stories, fan-made or original. The idea of going into a new place, fictional one or just some weird place has always fascinated me.

Like Zero no Tsukaima, or every Isekai manga out there.

It's like travelling to another planet, only without the sci-fi and more fantasy.

I've read a lot of fics of this idea, of one character jumps into another story and how those people are going to react. It was fascinating!

It makes me wonder if I could end up like that someday.

Sure it is a little dumb daydream but hey! Anything could happen!

But sure isn't me being dead though.

It was over in an instant. One second I was on the traffic crossing, the next… It was blur. I remember getting hit, then flying, then crashing, and sliding, you get the gist of it. That's what I get for not looking both ways before I cross.

But still, being dead is… a little underwhelming to be honest.

I was just in a dark space, like dark, dark.

Nothing here.

Just empty void of darkness.

I crossed my arms in irritation.

I guess all those talks about heaven or hell after death is just bullshit after all. I wasn't much a religious person myself anyway.

Oh, where are my manners…

The name's Rein, Rein Crosshart. Yeah, it's a weird name, but I have heard weirder.

I'm an Asian male of average height (At least it is in my country.), black hair and brown eyes. The standard Asian package. Twenty years old, and I'm dead. Damn, now that I've said it out loud it's kind of depressing. I've haven't finished my diploma yet and I'm already dead.

Well, at least I've no need to turn in those papers that I didn't do at all!

…

…

…

Okay, this is getting boring quick. What am I supposed to do here?!

Wait out the rest of eternity in this void going crazy?!

If this is the afterlife I want out!

I've never got to see the end of One Piece yet! That's a big thing! I mean, which loyal One Piece fan doesn't want to see the big finale of that amazing piece of art and story?!

And just as like that, the void brightens, and I know nothing.

* * *

The first thing I've notice after that light show is that I'm not in the void anymore. The blue sky, the white clouds, and the wide expansive ocean; yup, not the void. I've looked around, the rocky plains on my feet, my bare feet. Is it chilly here or just me?

I looked down on my body, and my mind froze.

I've have breasts.

Like… Female mammillary organs.

The two round fats that attracts the male gaze.

Not only that, I'm naked. Like a newborn baby.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" I yelled out as I groped my new body parts, "WHEN DID I GREW BOOBS?! IS THIS SOME KIND OF JOKE?!" I turn to the Cliffside and looked down at the sea, my reflection looking at me but not the one I expect.

Instead of a standard guy's face, I've got the most feminine face I know of. It's like a model face staring right back at me.

"Oh… Oh my gawd…" I muttered, before realizing my voice has changed as well. Gone was the boring male voice of Rein, instead it is a stranger's. A really beautiful, angelic voice.

I… turned into a girl… A really… hot… naked girl…

"What is going on?!" Is this the reincarnation thing?! If it is, can I have a redraw?! At least let me keep my guy parts!

"Okay, calm down… Calm down…" I panted, "Don't panic… just think. I'm on an unknown rocky cliff with nothing but my naked body, which is female… Okay, that sounds like the start of a real bad hentai…" I looked back, a lush forest behind me.

Okay, first thing first, food. No way I'm starving to death after reincarnating.

And clothes.

Definitely clothes.

Let's hope I'm on a habited place than anything else…

* * *

I think I might be lost. I know I saw this tree five times now.

"My luck is the worst!" I shouted out, hoping for someone to hear the commotion. Actually, now that I think about it, I best don't attract anyone or anything. The last thing I need it to start a gangbang. Or get introduce to bestiality. Nope, not getting into that kind of fetish.

I've been walking for hours, at least I think so, and I'm no way closer to anything! And my back is staring to ache a little. How do busty women walked around so easily? These things weight a lot!

*GROWL*

And now I'm hungry. Damn it, why do I have to get lost now?!

"Hope some of these fruits are edible…" I muttered. I looked up at the tree next to me, the apple-looking fruit dangling just above me.

Guess it's climbing time.

I dig my feet into the bark, wincing at the splinters of bark that digs to the bottom of my feet, I slowly climbed up the trunk to one of the branches, the red fruit just a few inches away. "Okay… steady…" I slowly crawl towards it, "Easy…" I reached out towards it, almost touching it.

*CREAK*

"…Uh oh…"

*CRACK*

"AH!"

I plummet to the ground below, landing on my chest hard. OW! Man my nipples are stinging. …I can't believe I just thought of that… Why do female bodies have to be that much more sensitive?! God hope my period isn't as bad…

After rubbing my aching chest (Still can't get used to the additional pillows), I took notice of the apple on the grass. "YES!" I grabbed the apple and was about to bite into it.

"Hello~ What do we have here?"

I froze, glancing to a bunch of men standing there with lecherous looks in their eyes. Their outfit kind of reminds me of old pirate movies, like in Pirates of the Caribbean. And are their pants bulging slightly…?

Oh… fuck…

"Hey guys! We found ourselves a little present!" One of the man shouted happily, "And she's already unwrapped~!"

"Look at those knockers! I bet I can blew a load off of those!" Another hooted, feeling his bulge already.

Crap, crap! This is the last thing I want after reincarnating!

"I-I don't want any trouble…" I hastily stutters out.

"Oh, my little pet, it won't be any trouble at all!" The first man laughed, "We just to relieve some stress, that's all. We won't hurt you, much."

I didn't want to hear anymore. I just scream before taking off and ran as fast as I can. I can hear their footsteps behind me as they chase me through the woods shouting out at me. Nonononononono, I didn't get reincarnated so I can be part of a pirate gangbang!

"Gotcha!" One of the men manages to throw me down onto the ground hard, before pulling me up and groping my breasts, "My, my, what soft things you have here! Can't wait to paint them white!"

"Hey! Let us have a turn!"

"Fuck off! I caught her! I get first lay!"

I've gone rigid from the unwanted pleasure of getting groped, his slimy muscle licking up the side of my neck. "No… Please…" I pleaded, not that it did any good.

His hand starts to slide down my stomach to my- NO! Not that! Anything but that!

"GAH!" His weight got off of me suddenly, me dropping on the floor panting and my face red. "Hey! Who are you?!"

I turn my head slightly, a man in a white shirt with dark blue pants tucked into a pair of black boots, his hands bandaged up with leather braces tied to his arms and the back of his hands, his reddish untrimmed hair sticks out slightly under a brown fedora. On his waist is a white plain katana lacking a guard or a pummel sitting firmly on a red sash and a haversack on his hand as he plops it on the ground.

"What kind of well-mannered man I be if I saw a lady getting raped and NOT step in to kick your asses?" He asked.

"Damn it, don't you know who we are?!" The pirate shouted drawing out a sword and his pals getting out some flintlock pistols as well. "We are the Don Krieg Pirates! Worst pirates of all of East Blue! Do you really think that you can take us?!"

Don Krieg? East Blue? Wait, wait, don't tell me! I'm in the One Piece universe am I?! I would be fanboy- Um… fangirling so hard right now if weren't for the trio of nasty pirates with blades and loaded pistols.

"Of all of East Blue?" The man chuckles, "I've heard, and I don't see it. You guys sure are large and infamous, but…" He raised his hand and sticks out a finger, "To me, a finger is all that I need."

"You cocky bastard!" One of them rushed at him swinging his sword at him, he sidesteps it and jams the finger onto the guy's temple. The pirate's eyes rolled up and collapsed onto the ground in front of me. Damn, he is good!"

"Ah! You've killed Kenny!"

"You bastard!"

The hell?! Pirate South Park?! Really?!

The other pirate aims his pistol and fired, my saviour flicked his finger and the bullet hits the other pirate instead, knocking him down, "The fuck?!" He turns his head just as he was flicked into the forehead, sending him crashing into the trees and away from the area.

"That takes care of that." He stated nonchalantly before turning to me, "You okay?"

"Y-Yeah…" I manages to get out, the badassary of what happened still fresh in my mind.

"Geez, some pirates just can't keep it in their pants…" He sighed as he walked over the haversack and lifts up onto his shoulder, "Come on." He tells me, "We better get out of here before the rest of their crew notices they are gone."

"A-Ah! R-Right…" I slowly tries to get up, my legs a little numb and I can feel fluids on my thigh- NO! I'm not turned on by what happened! I refuse to!

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked once more.

"I'm fine!" I stated, a bit too hastily as my legs are still struggling to keep me up. I hear him groan before some rustling of grass and I was sweep off my legs, his arms on my back and the back of my knees.

W-Wait… am I in a fucking princess carry?! NO! My man pride won't allow it.

"Put me down!" I screamed as I try to push him off, he not budging at all. Damn you, scrawny lady arms!

"No time." He stated, as he takes off through the forest.

Oh god please not let anyone see me like this! My pride will be demolished!

* * *

After a hour of carrying me (Pride broken, shattered…), he put me down by a small clearing. My legs nearly gave out under me but I held on. "T-Thanks…"

"Don't mention it." He shrugged, before raising his eyebrow slightly, "I just realised, you're naked."

You mean you never realized until now?! Wait, oh right, I'm naked! I screamed out in panic as I kneeled down and covered myself as much as I can with my arms.

"Geez! Chill! I'm not like those guys!" He cringed as he digs his ears, "Damn, you have chords of steel. Sure hope no one else heard that."

"L-Look away! Close your eyes!" I screamed out. This isn't what I expected of being reincarnated! Turning into a girl, stuck in an island somewhere, hungry, nearly getting raped, I hate this! My eyes feel hot and tears are flowing down my cheeks as sobs leaks out of my mouth. I don't care anymore! This is too much!

The man sighs before I hear rummaging, before feeling a cloth draped onto me. I feel the fabric, big and soft and proceeds to wrapped it around my body. "Sorry, but I don't have any female clothing so that would have to do."

"I-I'm be insulted if you have." I says out loud before I can stop.

"Yeah, you would." He laughed before sitting down on a fallen log, "The name's Sen. I'm a wanderer. What's your name?"

"…Rein." I answered hesitantly. A wanderer?

"Rein, huh?" Sen stated, "What are you doing wandering the forest in the nude?" He paused before pointing at me, "Bestiality?"

"FUCK NO!" I shouted. How could he think that?! That asshole! And I thought he was nice too!

"Kay, kay. I was just asking." He shrugged, "But still, what are you doing here? This is an unmarked island on the map right next to the Calm Belt. I doubt you came here looking for adventure in the buff. Or you are really-"

"Stop suggesting that!" I screamed, "That's just wrong! Unethical!"

"Right, got it. No bestiality fetish." He stated nodding to himself.

"So… what are YOU doing here?" I asked.

"Me? I'm just here to resupply." He stated, "Food, water, the usual. My boat is actually not too far from here. I was just about to head off when I heard you scream. Good think I did, isn't it."

"Y-Yeah, thank you for saving me." So he has a boat? I guess that's not unusual. This world is mostly sea. How else are you going to go around beside by boat?

"You wanna come with me?" He asked, "I can get you to the nearest inhabited island and drop you off there."

"A-Actually!" I need to stay with this guy! He is strong and I don't know the timeline of the plot I am right now. If it's before Luffy left, then I might some time to spare to train up and join his crew but if it's after they enter the Grand Line…

"May I join you in your journey…?"

He looked at me with one eyebrow raised, "Huh? Why would you want to join me?"

"I-I…" Crap, didn't think this through! "…I fell for you…?"

…

…

…

Okay, it's official. I suck in making excuses.

"Really…? Do you really want to use that excuse?" He deadpanned.

"Please! I beg of you!" I pleaded, pride be damned, "I-I don't know anyone out there! And I'm unarmed! I can't survive out there! You're my only chance in survival! Please! I'll do anything! I can cook! I know first aid! I-I…"

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm desperate, damn it!

"I-I can be your stress-reliever…?" I phrased it out as I lifted my blanket slightly to show a bit of my body.

He stared at me in disbelieve, before sighing heavily, "Lady. You can't just sell your body like that. Have some dignity."

"Hey! I'm desperate, alright?!"

He looked at me, "Alright, fine. You can come." He sighs, I cheering in the background, "But! Not as the whore! No. I'm going to train you."

…What?

"You're going to need some training if you're going to keep up with me." He stated, "I'm not some saint, but I'm not some asshole either. I'm going to train you up enough so that you wouldn't hold me back, got it?"

"…Huh?"

"Good!" He stands up, "You may call me Master Sen!"

…What did I gotten myself into…?

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **And there! Finished this in one day so it will be slightly rushed. But damn, I was thinking of writing this for a while, since I've read several SI One Piece fics and a lot of them are quite good! If you like this kind of story, I recommend This Bites by Xommiac. It is one of the best fics of this genre and what finally drove me to writing this.**

 **Another one I would recommend is Through the Eyes of a Canine by NyanWolfy. It was the first one I have read and it has quite an interesting premise!**

 **Twelve Red Lines by Vikingr is good as well!**

 **So yeah, Rein Crosshart. Another OC in my already long lists of OCs, written or otherwise. I know that I have started off rather randomly but there is a reason for it. You'll see!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	2. Ch 2:This is not what I had in mind

**Chapter 2: This is not what I had in mind.**

You know, when you think of training in an anime, you normally think of a montage of exercises, learning new techniques, those kind of things.

Definitely not swimming in the open ocean in the nude next to the boat with the one training me reading a book. Goddamn it, if he is just screwing with me, I'll find a way to make him pay!

Right after we left the island, he pretty much asked me get naked and dive into the ocean. Of course I refused, calling him a pervert and all that, but then rebuttal that I need to work on my stamina and swimming is a great way to build it on the go while working out some muscles.

And then I call him a liar and he decided the best course of action is to throw me out of the boat without warning.

Which leads to now, me desperately trying to match up to a sailing boat's pace with nothing but freestyle swimming.

Speaking of which, I should mention the boat that currently houses the two of us at the moment. It is a small boat that is big enough for at least four people, its design kind of reminds me of the boat that Sanji uses after the Don Krieg arc. Only this is pretty plain, brown wood mostly with a white sail, like a mini yacht. And that's about it, there's nothing really unique about it.

You know, I never did mention something unique about Sen that I have failed to point out.

His eyes.

They are like red rubies, which is weird even for One Piece standards. They aren't that glowing red, or that pale dye red either.

No, they reflect the light back like actual crystals.

It almost make him seem unworldly, like some demi-god or sorts.

That is, until I remember what he did to landed me in my current predicament.

"You're falling behind~"

I took notice that the boat is indeed floating further and further away. Panicking, I swam as fast as I could, trying to catch up to it. As soon as I reached, I grabbed onto the side of the boat and pull myself over and back aboard, panting from exhaustion. Brr! It's freezing!

"C-Can't I h-have m-my blank-ket back n-now…?" I manages to stutter out, rubbing my wet shoulders in a futile attempt to get warm.

Sen rolled his eyes, before throwing me my blanket back which I wrapped it around myself immediately. That warmed me up slightly but still a bit chilly considering the lack of clothing on me. Oh hey, a full moon. It's night already? Time sure flew by.

"So, how's your swim?" Sen asked, getting a glare from me, "Come on, why the glare?"

"Sorry, but I'm still wet and freezing from getting pushed into the goddamn ocean! *ACHOO!*" If I catch a cold, I'm blaming him!

"Like I said, it's training." He tells me, getting back to his book, "From what I can tell, you never lifted more than a plate of food once, haven't you?" I opened my mouth to say something, but then close it once I considered it. "So, this helps build strength. Plus stamina is always a good thing to have out in sea. No telling when you might capsized."

"But do you _have_ to push me off the boat?" I mumbled.

"Well, you're not going to do it voluntarily…"

"Grr…"

*GROWL*

My stomach have the timing to sound out like that. Right after getting mad at him!

Which reminds me… I haven't eaten anything at all since my reincarnation. I guess nearly getting raped and the shock of being in another world kind of distracted me from it.

"Wow, right after your swim!" He laughed.

"S-Shut up!" I shouted back at him, gods my face is burning isn't it?! "I can't help it! I didn't get to eat anything on that island!"

"Right, right. Hang on a moment." He walked into the… cabin? I never got the terminology of boats down. The only ones I know is of the Going Merry, and that's stretch in of itself. Anyway, after a while, I start to smell the aroma of cooked stew.

Huh, so he can cook? Maybe I can get him to teach me. That's a pretty useful skill of have, and it might give me something to present when I asked to join them.

Which reminds me now, how do I know when in the plot I am right now? Let's see… it'll be best if it's before Luffy set sail, but if it's somewhere in between…

"Sen, do you know of one Captain Morgan?"

"Huh? That Marine in charge of Shell Town?" Sen asked from the… let's call it the kitchen for now. "Not personally, no. But I have heard that he is quite a narcissistic tyrant of a Marine Captain. Why do you ask?"

"D-Did… anything big happened to him recently…?" I added. Please, not after. Not after!

"No, I don't think so…? Why?"

"Oh! No reason!" I tells him. Good. That means that Luffy probably haven't left Dawn Island yet! Who knows how long I have to train up, but at least I have some gauge to see.

"I see…?" Sen sounds unconvinced… Please just buy it! "Oh well. If you want to share, you'll share."

Whew! Dodged a bullet there. Best I keep me-knowing-the-whole-goddamn-plot a secret for now… Not that Sen would believe me. I doubt anyone would believe someone who somehow knows the entire future just because she- HE! I am a _guy_ , damn it! HE read about it in a comic book.

"Foods on!" Sen walked out of the kitchen, two steaming bowls of stew in his hands. "Not much, but it will warm you right up!"

I pretty much snatched it from him and starts devouring it with manners like a half-starved wolf. I don't care how I look, I'm starving, damn it! My tongue stings a little, but at least my stomach is filling up.

"Whoa, slow down! You'll choke!" He chuckles as he sips into his own as well.

"Don't care. *GULP* Hungry. *GULP*"

"I'm sure you are."

I swallowed the last of my bowl, wiping my mouth with the blanket, "Oh that hits the spot!"

"Glad you liked it." Sen said with a smile, scooping up a-

My brain froze.

In his spoon is a… eyeball. Oh god, it's the size of my thumb!

"Um… Sen…? What did you use in the stew?"

Sen looked at me confused, "The usual combination. Potatoes, carrots, pork ribs, maybe a dash of salt… Added in some pickled frog eyes, though! Gives it a little extra punch to the flavour."

Wait… I ate frog eyes?! Oh god I'm going to puke! And I think I am!

Bile rises up from my throat threating to spill out of my mouth, which I proceeds to release over the side of the boat into the sea.

That's the last time I _don't_ check what I eat!

* * *

After a couple of days sailing, my routine falls into swimming in the evening and push-ups in the morning, we finally arrived at port. And to my surprise…

It's Loguetown.

Loguetown, like the last island before the Straw Hats leave the peaceful East Blue for the chaotic Grand Line. THAT Loguetown.

"Loguetown, the final destination for pirates heading into the Grand Line." Sen tells me, "Well, for you, it's the first destination in your training."

"H-Huh…?" I looked at him confused.

"We need supplies since, you know, you pretty much threw out most of the food…"

"I have to! Half of them looked like something a witch would use in a potion! And not the good kinds!" Which is true. He actually keeps snakes pickled in a jar. Snakes!

"Picky eater…" He grumbled, "Honestly though, we need more than just food. Especially you."

"Me?"

"Do you really want to wear a blanket over your nude body your whole life?"

Oh yeah, forgotten about my wardrobe malfunction. It was just us two that it slipped my mind. That's true. I should at least get some decent clothing. Don't want another near rape incident anytime soon. But slight problem.

I'm broke.

I mean, I have nothing on me at all! I showed up there fucking naked after all! How am I supposed to pay for my things?

"Maybe if I can find a warehouse and steal some-"

"Here."

I looked down at his offered hand, a bundle of money, Beri I think was the currency, on his palm. Each of them is a thousand beri note. A quick math later and it should be about… at least ten thousands beri. Wait, he's giving me money?

"You're broke, right?" Sen stated, "Take it. Consider it an investment for your training."

"But it's a lot of money…"

"Woman clothing have always been on the expensive side." He shrugged, before pointing down a street, "Go down this street and turn left. There will be signs here and there but it should be pretty obvious when you see it."

"Wait, you're not coming with me?!"

"I'm a grown man walking down the street with a near nudist lady." He deadpanned, "I at least wish to avoid getting misunderstood as a sexual deviant."

"Ah, that's true."

Wait, did he say 'woman clothing'…?

…Oh yeah, I'm a girl now, aren't I? At least physically speaking. I guess male clothes wouldn't fit me now. Oh well… Better get used to it. I'm stuck this way anyway. Not like it's going to change who I am underneath.

"Okay, you stay safe, alright?" He tells me as he walks off, "Meet back at the boat by sundown. Any later and you have to swim to the boat."

"Yeah, yeah." I waved him off as he walked off. Wonder what he is going to do? Probably get the groceries, maybe a few cloths and wood. But still, it's nice for him to give me some money to spend. Guess he _can_ be a genuine nice guy.

'I'll buy him a little something to repay him.' Nodding at that decision, I walked down the streets to try and find the clothing store.

* * *

Okay, this is ridiculous. There are too many people and the street signs are of little help considering the lack of them. How did Nami found that store in this maze?!

"Where's that damn clothing store?!"

I'm right now just wandering the streets, completely lost and no clothing store in sight. There are plenty of them, sure, but they looked to classy and gawky for my taste. And the male ones looked too big for my current size, which happens to be a foot shorter than my original height.

Is this what Zoro feels all the time? Damn it, no! I'm not letting this be my quirk! One directionally challenge pirate is more than enough!

And I'm starting to notice the stares I'm getting from the crowd around me. I guess my cute looks aside, a young girl bare-footed wearing a used blanket big enough to cover her entire body is definitely going to turn some heads.

Thank gods today isn't windy at the slightest.

Okay, let's try going down this street next-

"Excuse me, ma'am?"

I stopped, turning around to address that voice, and then freezing slightly.

There, standing in front of me, is the Marine Lieutenant (Or was it Lieutenant Sergeant?) herself, Tashigi in her megane glory with a couple of Marine officers behind her. She's wearing the same outfit that is anonymous to her in the manga, in her hands is the same sword I saw in the pages. What was it called again? Shigure?

"M-May I help you, officer?" I asked, trying not to look suspicious, which is kind of pointless considering my current attire.

"Sorry, but I was getting word of a suspicious lady wandering the streets." She stated, adjusting her glasses like any megane character would. "Mind if I ask you a few questions?"

"U-Uh…"

"And do you mind getting rid of that dirty robe as well?" She added.

WHAT?! "Huh?! Oh, no! I-I can't!" She's asking me to strip in public?! FUCK NO! I didn't escape from rape to become an exhibitionist!

"Ma'am, it'll be in your best interest if you remove it." She said calmly.

"Seriously, I can't!"

"Are you hiding any suspicious goods under there?"

"N-No, but-"

"Then, please, take it off."

This girl is relentless! What part of NO doesn't she get?

"Ma'am, you could be charged in obstruction of official Marine business if you do not cooperate!" She warned me, "That equals to-"

"No means no!"

"Take that off!" She cried out pulling on my blanket, I struggling to keep it wrapped around me. I'm not flashing in front of a damn crowd! Especially not in front of-

*RIP*

That ominous sound echoed in my ear, as the blanket ripped in two, throwing me and Tashigi back and onto the floor. The familiar coldness struck me as I froze, staring at a good portion of my protective cloth in the Lieutenant's hand and her eyes widen in shock.

Oh. Hell. No.

"KKKKYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!-!" I screamed at the top of my lungs as I struggles to cover myself with the remaining blanket. That seems to snap Tashigi out of it as she stands up with cheeks flushed red.

"I-I'm so, so sorry!" She cried out waving the cloth in front of me, "I-I didn't know! F-Forgive me!"

"PERVERT! DEVIANT! SICKO! BITCH!" I don't care what comes out of my mouth, or if I'm crying again, my dignity is in complete shambles! Not even a week in and I've shown my naked body to the world TWICE! That just doesn't happen anyone damn it!

"G-Get me a blanket or something!" She commanded one of the officers, who rubbed his bloody nose and saluted before rushing off.

Not sure who long was I screaming for, but that officer came back with a large blue blanket that was handed over the Tashigi, who proceeds to wrap it around me. "T-There… nothing showing now…" She mutters, "Sorry about this. If I have known better…"

"Cloth-*SNIFF* Clothing store…" I managed to sob out.

"Alright, alright… let's go there. I think I know one nearby…" She takes my hand and then turn to the male officers, "Report to Captain Smoker that I'll be a little late to the briefing."

"Yes, Lieutenant, ma'am!" They saluted before running off. With a tender grip, she leads me away from the crowd of onlookers. I think I saw a few boyfriends getting slapped by their other half.

This day isn't starting out well…

* * *

After a few twist and turns, the Marine Lieutenant brought me to a clothing store just a few streets down that seems suitable for my needs. Its name is the Neptune Sister in the wooden billboard in bright cyan, and it wasn't as gaudy-looking as the others. Plus, the clothes here looked nice and functional for days out in sea. There are even some swimsuits on display as well.

"I always buy my clothes here." Tashigi tells me, "The other female officers recommended it to me. They are reasonably cheap and practical, look nice too."

"Thank you so much." I bowed to her, they used Japanese mannerism here, right?

"It's no big deal. I'm kind of at fault for your… outfit…" She stated blushing.

Wait… is she-?!

"Well, I should be going!" She stated suddenly walking off, "Mention my name, it's Tashigi by the way, and she might give a discount!" She then disappear into the crowd of people.

Huh, talk about a first impression. Hopefully I didn't derail the plot by doing this…

Shaking the bad feeling off, I enter the shop with the bell ringing, the inside as plain as any clothing store can be, say for a few decorations here and there. I hear slight rumbling before a lady walked out from the back carrying a large crate in her arms.

"Welcome to Neptune Sister." She greeted absentmindedly as she puts the crate down on the cashier counter, "How may I help you?"

"Just browsing for now." I tells her, walking up to the racks of clothes. Hm… what should I wear? I definitely need some underwear at least, but there doesn't seem to be any lingerie shops nearby. Then again, Sen is definitely going to make me swim a lot once we get back to the boat so maybe I should go commando all the way?

…Nope. Not gutsy enough for that. And I have heard from my sisters than not wearing any underwear isn't good for you with the cloth keep rubbing into their…

Maybe… a swimsuit underneath my clothes?

Yeah, let's go with that!

Looking around the store a bit, manages to find a dark one-piece suit with red highlights by the abdomen. With that, picked out the rest of my outfit and put it on.

I've decided to look a little pirate-like, a beige dress shirt left opened to show my swimsuit underneath, dark blue pants tucked into my brown boots with a white sash tied around my waist and a red bandana tied loosely around my neck like a scarf. I even added a pair of black leather gloves for show.

Yup, I looked alright, I guess. I mean, I'm no Nico Robin, but I still look nice in this.

Maybe a hat to finish the look?

And that makes me think about Sen. Huh? Our outfits are quite similar. What are the odds?

I'll skip the hat. It'll make me look like a copycat.

"I'll be taking this." I tells the shopkeeper, who looked at me up and down.

"Huh? Never seen someone wearing a swimsuit under their clothes like this before…" She stated, "…It's not half bad. Especially with your chest size. It actually emphasized the DD."

DD…? Wait, my chest is a DD?!

"H-How do you…?"

"I've been in this business for quite a while, miss." She tells me, "And I know a certain size when I see it. And you have quite a figure to support it."

Great… now everyone is going to notice me even more… Oh well, Nami and Robin wear these kinds of things all the time. I guess I should follow suit.

"How much for this?" I asked, "Oh, and Tashigi told me mention her name…?"

"Friend of hers, huh?" She thinks for a moment, maybe calculating the total cost, "It's about 10,530 beri, but I'll round it up to 10K for you. Consider it a little bonus for giving me an idea for my next display."

Display? Oh well, it's not like I'll come back here anytime soon. Probably shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. I takes out the bundle of cash from by cleavage (I don't have pockets when he gave me so I did what any sexy anime chick would do) and take out of the set of cash for her.

"Pleasure doing business with you!"

I take a walk out of the store with a satisfied smile on my face. With that purchase, I am left with quite a handsome sum of change with me. What else should I buy…? I guess I could wear the same clothes for long periods of time, my swimsuit is said to be waterproof after all and I can just wear that if my clothes are getting wet.

"I guess I'll just wander about…" I then recalled the blanket in my arms, folded neatly into a square-rectangle. I guess I could return this. It's only the right thing to do.

Now… where's that marine base…?

* * *

After a few dead ends, I finally manages to get to the Marine Base. The large white building with the famous (or infamous depending on your occupation) blue insignia by the metal gates. Quite an imposing figure, the building I mean. There's something unnerving about it.

Maybe because I'm thinking of joining a pirate crew in the near future…

Now then, "How do I return this…?"

"May I help you?" A gruff voice speaks from behind me. Okay… raspy, definitely male, have a tone of badass to it, I have to say…

I turned around and loo and behold, the White Devil himself, Captain Smoker. He's as gruff looking as I have seen, only Oda couldn't fully portray the sheer intimidation that pours off of him. He is buff, like boxer-buff. Every muscle is firm looking but not too big that is looks ridiculous. His unnatural white hair seems natural looking now, and the cigar lit on his lips with smoke spewing out of his mouth.

Yup, now I understand why pirates are afraid of him. Even a civilian would be slightly unnerved by his presence.

"Sorry, but I asked you question, lady." He repeated himself, glaring at me.

"O-Oh! Right. Sorry, just here to return this." I handed out the blanket to him, his eyebrow quirked up in confusion. Huh? Didn't Tashigi say anything? He _is_ her commanding officer, right?

"Lieutenant Tashigi gave me this." He blinked a little, a bit lost before eyes glittered with understanding.

"Ah, you must be that 'Incident'." He stated, I blinking at the emphasis on the word. "Sorry for my officer's lack of tact. She's writing a report on it right now."

"O-Oh, no! It's okay!" I tells him, taken by surprise by his sudden politeness. I never thought I'll see a side like this. I guess he does have that 'heart of justice'. "If it's alright with you, can I leave this with you?"

"Sure." He takes the offered blanket and tucked in under his arm, "And don't worry, I'll make sure to discipline her as soon as I'm able." After saying that, he opened the gate and enter the base.

Oh dear… Poor Tashigi…

Well, better her than me!

Now, back to the boat! If I can recall the correct way this time…

* * *

After finally succumbing to _asking for directions_ , I manages to get back to the boat just as the sun is about to set. Sen is there already, loading up the crates of supplies onto the vessel. "That's everything." He mutters as he slaps his hands together, before turning to me.

"I see you're finally wearing something."

"What? You want me to be naked all the time?"

"Nope, just stating the obvious." He chuckles before turning to the rope, "Climb aboard. I'll handle the ropes."

"Need help with that?"

"Nah, it'll be quick."

I nodded at him, before getting onto the boat. After a while, we are off the port and sailing away from the port. I looked back at it, Loguetown is slowly disappearing over the horizon.

One day, I'll be back. As a pirate, as a member of the Straw Hats. Just you wait, Loguetown-

My inner monologue was interrupted when I was shoved off the boat, splashing into the salty waters. I manages to swim up to the surface before noticing the boat already a good mile away.

I hate that guy…

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Okay, a little of filler before the juicy parts of a SI fanfic began. This chapter is a little dragged out, I apologized. I'm a little lost on how to go from the first chapter that is not going to be related to the plot and this little prologue before the training is all I could think of.**

 **Sorry if some people are disappointed, but this is the best I can do for now.**

 **Don't worry, there's will be some proper plot after this.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	3. Ch 3:Meeting some fishermen

**Chapter 3: Meeting some fishermen.**

Three months passed since I have first arrived in this world. Surprising how time can just fly by. It wasn't the easiest time of my life in this world, Sen pushed me to my limits in his supposed 'training'.

I still call bullshit on some of them.

Swimming, sure. But while being chased by blood-thirsty SHARKS?! I was lucky to be alive after all those times!

Either way, I am lucky Sen found me when he did. I would probably be raped and brought along to Don Krieg to be a sex slave. And then probably died when Mihawk attacked them.

But still. Bullshit training. I stand by that!

Can't say that they aren't showing results, though. My stamina is definitely way better than my usual unfit self. I am able to lift half by own weight now! I bet I can punch just as hard as Luffy now!

…Okay, maybe not as strong as the rubber pirate… But definitely enough to knock a guy out cold!

And that brings me to the present time, me swimming right next to the boat with Sen writing into a book. I've asked him about it a few times, but he often gave me very vague answers.

"I see you're finally able to match up to ship normally now." He stated.

"Right, no thanks to you." I huffed back.

"Are you still mad about the sharks?"

"Yes."

"Come on, that was a two weeks ago!" He cried out, "How was I supposed to know we were in shark infested waters?!"

"There are fucking fins sticking out of the water!" I shouted back, "That's the most obvious signs of sharks!"

"In my defence, I thought those where dolphins."

"BULLSHIT!"

And just as I was started to argue back at him, the current suddenly changed, pulling me away from the boat. I looked back and saw what it was.

A large whirlpool the size of a house! And I was caught in one of the swirls!

"Rein!"

"Ah! H-HELP!" I struggles to swim towards the boat, but no matter how hard I tried, it keeps pulling me further and further away, "HELP ME!"

"Quick! Catch this rope!" Sen pulls out said rope and tossed it straight me. I managed to catch it, I stopping abruptly for moment before swaying a little in the strong currents. I feel him pulling the rope, struggling to make sure the boat doesn't touch the edge while trying to save me.

*SNAP*

And then the rope snapped, my eyes widen in horror as my lifeline was nothing but a spread of dried weeds. I tried to scream but the water is filling my lungs as I was pulled down under the salty depths. I struggles to get to the surface but I can't summon any strength to my limps.

Soon enough, from the lack of oxygen, I passed out.

* * *

Sen looked at his now shorter broken rope in pure horror. The girl he taken as his own apprentice is probably dead under the ocean now. He shakes his head in denial, 'No! Rein isn't dead yet until I see it!' He tells himself.

Turning his attention to his boat, he turns to rudder to sail away from the whirlpool before taking out a map.

"Let's see… the closest island here is Lain." He mutters, "The fishing town, Risa, is famous for their seafood, and their preferred method is their deep sea fishing… Hopefully one of them manages to saw her floating about…"

With that said, he set up his compass and set his course.

'Rein, don't you dare die on me!'

…

I was dead, sure I was. But it didn't felt like it. For once, I can still feel my body being moved. Maybe I was found and saved? Could be, but I can't open my eyes to check, or even move my mouth or a finger. Not only that, my lungs are definitely filled with water. I can't even breathe. Is this what being unconscious feel like?

"Damn, what happened to you?"

A voice. Not Sen, then, but a male.

"Must have capsized and sucked into that whirlpool…"

Crap, a male! I'm in nothing but my swimsuit right now! He better not try to take advantage of me!

Not long after, I feel a pressure on my chest. CPR, perhaps? Whatever it is, is working. The pressure is forcing some of the water out of my mouth, and forcing some air back in.

A sudden pressure of air sucking into my lungs made me cough, hard, as I manages to get out the rest of the water. I sucked in the water as much as I can while trying to keep a steady breathing.

"And she's lives!"

I manage to keep my breaths steady, some strength coming back to me. My eyes are heavy but I forced them to open, which isn't easy but slowly I did. The light blinds me for a moment, meaning it's still daytime, thank gods, and a blurry figure.

As my eyesight manages to focus, the figure sharpened and there sat an elderly man with tanned skin, a greying hair on his black mane of a hair with a dark seaweed-green eyes and a black moustache on his smiling mouth. He seems to be shirtless wearing a brown pants and a red sash around his waist.

"Hey there, lass!"

"Uuurrr…" I barely got out from my aching throat.

"Still be a little groggily, huh." He laughed, "Well, that's expected. You nearly drowned out there. Lucky that was I just in the area, huh?"

"Tha-*COUGH* …Thank you." I finally can get proper words out of my mouth. I sat back up, observing my surrounds.

I'm on what seems to be a long narrow boat, the types used by traditional fishermen. At the back of the boat, several large barrels of what seems to be fishes of various sorts. I can't tell what kind, but I can see a few noticeable ones. Grouper, dory… I think I saw a shark hanging on the corner of the sail.

So he's a fisherman. That means I'm probably close to an island nearby. I looked across the horizon, managing to find an indication of land just barely off the starboard side.

"Now then, time to head back home." He stated as he pulls down the sail, the boat starts to move towards the island, "Oh, right. The name's Lulong. What's yours, lassy?"

"Rein."

"Ms Rein, eh?" He worked ropes of the sail rather expertly, "What's a young beautiful woman such as yourself swimming around Whirlpool Cove at low tide?"

"Whirlpool Cove?" I looked at him confused, "Sorry, but I'm a traveller, so…"

"Ah, that explains it." He nodded, "That's the area where you nearly drowned. The place has a unique rock formation under the waters in which at low tide, the currents get caught between the rocks and twists it against other currents in the open waters, creating a big whirlpool."

"Oh…"

"Well, here we are. Risa Town!"

Lulong adjusted sail slightly, land coming close and revealing a rather large village of houses build above the water with pillars sticking into the waters below. Houses all building upon the cement which seems to form a platform extending from the small cliffs.

He keeps the sails as we slowed down to near the docks, the old fisherman tossing a rope and pulling the boat into parking position. I slowly got onto the port, taking a much closer look at the town. The houses are all white, with bluish designs on the windows or the doors. Signs drawn in noticeable symbols as well as their names hang near the doors.

It reminds me of that town in Greece.

"Come, you'll stay with my family for now." He tells me, the two of us walked down the gravel street. There aren't many people but there are several fierce looking man looking about as well as several Marines wandering about in their uniform and rifles.

Now that I've looked closely, there are Marines almost everywhere in this port. Is there some big Marine base here nearby?

"Hey, Lulong, why are there so many Marines about?" I asked.

"Oh you notice?" He stated, "This place is the largest fishing town in the East Blue. Not sure the exact details, but the location of our island is ideal for ninety percent of the fish native to these seas. We can catch almost anything in our waters, heck, I recall nearly catching a large Sea King myself once!"

"A Sea King?!" Aren't those like the largest of all sea creatures in this world?! And this guy caught one?!

"It was the young one so it wasn't as big but it's a plus in my book!" He laughed, "But I'm getting off-topic. Due to the large export of our seafood, our finances are extremely well-off for a fishing town. Apparently, pirates thought the same so they attacked and pillage this place multiple times. That stopped when the Marine HQ decided to build a base here." He pointed out, my eyes following his finger to a large white building a little ways from the town near the cliffs.

"Why would they build one here?"

"For one, we are the largest supply of seafood in the East Blue so any attacks we received will cause an inflation in prices." He added, "Another is this place is an ideal spot for one. This island is in the geographic centre of the East Blue. Meaning all routes from here to any of the islands are the shortest and the fastest."

"Ah, that make sense." I nodded. It's like Singapore with the British. It was right middle of the trade route from Europe to Asia, the ideal place to set up a port.

"Oh, by the way, aren't you cold?" He asked suddenly.

I looked at him confused. Now that I think about it…

I'm still in my swimsuit, aren't I? I groaned a little before palming my face for my own stupidity. God, I'm becoming Luffy at this rate… And as much as I adore the guy, I do NOT want to become him.

"My clothes must still be on the boat…" I muttered.

"Oh? So you got nothing with you, huh?" He chuckled, "Good thing my wife got some spares. It might be a tight fit though."

"Oh, thank you Lulong." I stated, "I hate to freeload so if there's anything I can do for you, let me know."

"Sure, if anything came to mind." He nodded with a smile.

After down a few streets, we made it to a small two story house. After welcoming me in, his wife, a middle-aged woman with quite a fit body for her age and equally tanned skin named Tein, made me change out of my wet swimsuit into a more presentable outfit.

She ended up dressing me in a red long shirt with long sleeves that reaches down passed my hips with white pants and a pair of brown shoes. A leather belt is tied around my waist to show off my figure.

"My, oh my, it fits you so well." She stated happily.

"It's like looking at your younger self." Lulong laughed, "Ah, memories~"

"Thanks you, ma'am." I bowed to them. We all at their living room with the elderly couple sitting on the couch. "I'll return it as soon as I-"

"No, keep it." The elderly lady tells me, "Those clothes would be happier with you than in the cupboard gathering dust."

"Oh… Thank you, I'm truly in your dept."

"So lass, what are you doing on this island with nothing but a swimsuit?" He asked me suddenly, "Did you get thrown overboard or something?"

"Um… something like that…?" I laughed nervously. What can I tell them? "I'm actually training and my idiot of a master fail to mention the whirlpool."? I'm not willing to believe that myself.

"A pirate raid, I presume." Tein sighed sadly, "I'm sorry for your loss, dear. It must be so terrifying…"

"Oh, no! That's not-"

"Mom! Dad! I'm back!" A voice called out from the doorway.

Tein got up and walked towards the hallway where a young man in his early twenties with black hair tied in a braid walked in a white jacket left opened to show his muscular outfit with bandages around his chest and navy-blue pants with black boots. In his hand is a Japanese spear, a Yari if I recall, with a bluish blade and grey pole with bronze cuffs at either ends.

"Ah, Suiren, welcome back." She greeted back, "How's work?"

"Not much, thank goodness." He sighed resting his weapon on the wall as he rolls his shoulders. I just realized, he is pretty short for a dude. I mean, I was at least a head taller than him as a guy. "There hasn't been any pirate sightings recently. And the surrounding waters are doing alright."

Pirate sightings…? Is he part of a militia? Or maybe…

"That's good news." She nodded with a smile, before walking up to me, "Oh, and we have a guest. This lady's Rein, and will be staying with us for a while."

He took notice of me, his eyes seems to scan me over, trying to figure me out. God I feel naked under his eyes. "I-It's nice to meet you…?"

"…Are you wearing…?"

Huh? My clothes…? I looked down and patted it down. Does he recognised this…?

"Hey, you're not wearing it anymore so might as well, right?" Lulong shrugged.

Wait, these are his?

"Um… sorry for stealing this…" I apologized.

"No, it's alright." He smiled, "But where did dad find you?"

"Found her drifting about near Whirlpool Cove." Lulong tells his son, "Thought she was dead for a moment."

"I was REALLY lucky…" I laughed nervously. Like really. Any second later and I'll be visiting my dead grandparents early.

"More like a miracle." Suiren stated, "Dad rarely fish near there. Usually his catches are in the open ocean."

"Say, how Lieutant broken knuckles doing?" The fisherman asked.

"Lieutenant Fullbody, dad." The son replied, "And he has been busy. There seems to be a notorious pirate crushing villages at a nearby island so he left to intercept them."

Fullbody? As in the Marine? Wait, is he a Marine?

"Are you a Marine?" I asked him.

"Yes, he is!" Tein tells me with a proud smile, "Lieutenant Suiren! He is second-in-command of the Marine Base here! Let me tell you, it is thanks to him and Fullbody that this place is pirates-free! There's no pirate strong enough to take him down!"

Wow, what a proud mother she is. I guess she would be with a son like that.

"Come on, mom, you're embarrassing me…" He muttered blushing, "And besides, Fullbody did most of the work, anyway."

"Ha! That flirty idiot is nothing compared to you!" Lulong stated angrily, "He just taking most of YOUR credit!"

"Dad, it was just that one time!"

"Nonsense! With the way he acts most of the time, I wonder if he cheated to get that promotion."

Huh? Sensing a history between here. And Fullbody. Damn, wasn't expecting any of the side characters to be in-charge of such an important place. Then again, in the manga, he is shown to be quite strong. He took down Gin, after all, and even an entire crew of pirates in a side story.

But I guess the flirty and little jackass attitude is more common than just that one time. He did made Lieutenant, after all. He must have done something right.

"Come on dad, that's uncalled for!" Suiren cried, "So he flirted with me one time, and maybe is a little sexist, but he definitely made that promotion proper!"

…Wait, what? He flirted with HIM? A GUY? … is he bisexual then? Guess there's more to him than I thought. But sexist…? Aren't they both guys, how does that work?

"Hey! Any guy that tries to get it on with my daughter is a bad one in my books!" Lulong retorted.

"Come on, dear…" Tein sighs.

Wait, DAUGTHER?! As in, _female_?! Suiren is a girl?!

"YOU'RE A GIRL?!" I suddenly shouted, my discovery is more than less shocking. HE is a SHE?! But he- I mean she… looks like a guy!

"Ah, another broken heart, eh~?" Lulong teased, winking at his son- I mean daughter.

"Oh, shut up, dad."

"I… You… but…" I can't find the words. No matter how you looked at him, or her, Suiren looks exactly like a guy! Even his/her body looks like one!

"Surprised, huh?" Lulong laughed, "Doesn't look feminine at all, does she? Not that it matters. She is still a badass Marine either way!"

Man, and I thought Ivankov whole gender-swapping thing is the most misleading way. The world's a big place, I see.

"Huh? Then why was she hit on?" I asked.

"Oh, she didn't use to look this way." Lulong stated as he shows me a photo frame. In it is definitely Suiren, but she looked so pretty. Her hair is longer too. And the clothes… are they the same ones as I'm wearing…?

"Ah, that makes sense."

"To be honest, I started dressing this way so Fullbody would take my work seriously." Suiren sighs, "Don't get me wrong, he is an amazing Marine in his own right, but he has this bad habit of thinking like a playboy when he's off-duty."

"That idiot thinks he can charm any lady he wishes." Lulong added, "Which isn't true. He can't get a lady even if he cheated. Suiren gave him an ass-whopping the first time he tried."

"But besides that, he is an alright person." His daughter added on.

"Ah, I see." I nodded.

After that, I was sent to work by Lulong and Tein. It were mostly very simple jobs, like cleaning the house, washing the clothes, weeding the garden, helping to prepare the fish for the market and so forth. It was my life as a freeloader for the next few days.

During all of that, I have seen Suiren around the town during her patrols. She is pretty popular from what I can see. Many of the townspeople greeted her and even thanked her for her hard work. I have yet to see Fullbody, and hopefully Sen find me before he arrive back.

But alas, fate isn't so kind.

* * *

It was sometime in the afternoon. People have mentioned the return of a Marine battleship, peaking my interest. So, as the curious soul I am, after finishing my chore I went out to the port for a peek.

When I arrived, there was a bit of a crowd there as the marines alighted the vessel in an orderly manner. I pushed passed a few people to take a look, just as a familiar face walked down the ramp with a cocksure smirk on his face.

Lieutenant Fullbody has arrived.

He is as the manga showed him to be, at least before Sanji beat the crap out of him. His stride shows that he is sure of himself, that he is truly a worthy man for anyone.

It kinds of grind my gears honestly…

"Welcome back, Lieutenant Fullbody, sir!" One of the officers greeted.

"Where's Suiren?" He asked.

"She is busy with some paperwork that came in, sir."

"Quite a hard worker as always, that Suiren." He huffs, "Anything else to report?"

"None of real importance, sir! The island has been peaceful."

"Is that so?" He smirks, "More prove of my aptitude as a Marine. Pirates all over cower in fear at the mention of the name Fullbody."

Wow, cocky much?

"Oh right! There has been a telegram of an inspection on all Marine bases in the following week." The marine added on.

"Huh? How come?" Fullbody asked confused.

"There has been an incident at the base of Shell Town." He replied, "Captain Morgan is found guilty of embezzlement of funds as well as the abuse of his own authority. As such, all marine bases in the East Blue are to surrender for inspection by HQ."

Oh, Morgan was arrested… that means that Luffy must have left Shell Town a few days ago. That leaves me with about… a few months before they left for the Grand Line. What can I learn in that time to be useful to them?

"Oh geez that axe meathead got what is coming for him." The Lieutenant sighs with a cocky smile, "Oh well, not that it matters to me, but… Who's inspecting this time?"

"That information hasn't arrive yet, sir."

"Keep me posted on that." He tells him, "As for the rest of you, escort the prisoners to their cells."

"Sir, yes sir!" They saluted as Fullbody walked off. The crowd slowly disbursing once all the commotion is over, although a few still remain. That includes me, which is to be given as I was in deep thought. Now, what role can I fit into…? Let's see… Maybe Chronicler? Most ship captains in movies and anime seems to write a log of their own journey, and with Luffy…

"Oh, hello beautiful."

I'm snapped out of my thoughts when Fullbody called me out. I took notice of the lack of distance between us and his terrible attempt at a charming smile. It just writes off as creepy and needy.

"I never seen an angel like you around this parts before." He stated suavely, "Want me to show you around? It would be fun."

Angel? The hell of pick-up line is that? "Oh, no. I'm good." I tells him as I walked back, "And I have to get going-"

"Now, now, there's no rush!" He added snaking his arm around my waist, "There's a restaurant I know that cooks the best seafood in town. Why don't we have lunch? Just the two of us. My treat."

"No, really, I got get going." I pry his hand off my waist and walked off, "Thanks for the offer, though."

"Hey, wait!" He cried, I ignoring and walking down the street back where I came from. Geez, I have heard of dense, but it is like he don't know that a girl can say no.

"PIRATES!" A marine suddenly shouted, I turned around to see a boat out in the horizon. A large galleon with a familiar black flag fluttering in the wind. I can't quite make out the jolly roger, but it wasn't needed as the townspeople starts running away from the port as fast as they can.

Marines starts rushing down the streets with rifles at the ready as well as pulling out several mortars from houses nearby. I looked on with curiosity, and was snapped out of it when Fullbody patted me on the shoulder with a serious look, "You better get out of the port! Head down the street to the town square and stay there!"

I numbly nodded as the Lieutenant ran down to join his squad. That wasn't what I expect from him especially from my first impression of him. Not wanting to get caught up the battle, I follow his instructions and head for the town square.

* * *

"Is our defences ready?" Fullbody asked, the cannons and mortar at the ready.

"Most of them are set, sir!"

"Good!" He nodded looking at the ship approaching. "Any word from Suiren?"

"She is gathering as much personnel as she can as we speak."

"Alright, men! You know our duty!" He called out, flexing his fingers slightly, "We are to not let them approach this town no matter what!"

"What about the prisoners, sir?"

"Leave them in the brig for now!" He looked through a telescope, the flag fluttering in the wind and took notice of it. It was a skull over a wheel, "Never seen that flag before… Alright men! Don't let them near the shore, no matter what!"

"Cannons armed and ready!"

"Mortars set!"

"Fire!"

In the series of loud booms, the cannonballs are sent flying, crashing into the waters and maybe the boat. They then reloaded before firing again, barely hitting onto the boat. Several flashes in the distance before several booms hits the town behind them, knocking up debris of stone and wood all over.

"Keep firing!" Fullbody shouted, "We got thin down their numbers!" He looked over at the fallen houses. 'This is definitely not looking good for my resume…'

* * *

In the distance, I can see smoke and explosions of grand exposure. That can't be good… I think I saw a few houses getting knocked down.

The murmurs in the crowd are increasing by the second, the unease is rising by the second. The marines there are doing their best to calm everyone down, but it only increase the tension. I looked over to the horizon, noticing the galleon have docked at the port. It is damaged slightly, but still sea worthy.

I don't recognise the Jolly Roger though… Must be some no-name pirates. But still, pirates are still pirates. And if reading One Piece have taught me anything, is that pirates are always dangerous, whether or not they are known or not.

I then took notice of some figures running towards us, a glint of steel caught my eye. Crap, did some slip by the Marines?!

"Pirates, here?!" One of the marines cried out.

"Fire! Don't let them near the civilians!" Another called out before firing their rifles. They grazed some of them as they charged forward with their swords drawn. Some of the marines also drew their swords and intercept the pirates.

Some of them still manages to slip through and grabbed one of the random civilians and raised his blade to her neck. "Now, now…"

Before he could do anything, however, I was already rushing towards them and punched one of them in the face as hard as I could. I feel the breaking of bones under my fist, as the guy was sent flying to the wall and he dropped onto the ground unconscious.

The pirates are left stunned for a moment, before looking and charging at me. I picked up the sword on the floor before raising it up and blocking an incoming blade. I pushed back and kicks him in the crotch hard, the man squeaked a little before falling unconscious.

The rest was a blur as I blocked most of the strikes with my sword before knocking the rest of them down with my kicks and punches. As soon as it was over, some of the pirates are left unconscious on the floor, much to the shock of the marines there.

That… was thrilling. And terrifying! What was I thinking, attacking the pirates like I did?!

"That was amazing, girl!" One of the Marines shouted.

"Damn that girl!" A pirate shouted pulling out a pistol, the hammer cocked back. I could only stared at it in shock, but then a spear flew passed me and stabbing into the pirate's chest. I follow the chain of the spear back to Suiren standing there with several more Marines. She pulls the chain, the spear slides out of the body back to her where the chains slid back into the pole, forming her complete weapon.

"Lieutenant Suiren!" One of the marines cried.

"Leave the rest to us." She tells them as she takes into position.

"No way, is that…?" One of the pirates looked at her in shock.

"This is her district?!" Another one cried out, "Ocean Amazon, Suiren!"

"Capture them all!" She ordered, the marines with her taking action, she charging first into the fray by stabbing one pirate in the chest and tossing him at the others. She then swings her spear and sends several of them flying.

Spinning her spear, she splits her weapon into two and spun the chain full around, knocking another group into the houses and walls. With a twist of her hand, she wrapped her chains around a group of them before tossing them over down the street.

One pirate tries to sneak up on her, only for her to spun around and knock him out with the non-blade half of her spear.

After several minutes of fighting, most of the pirates that gotten passed Fullbody are either unconscious or dead. Not so sure about the dead people on the ground but… better them than me… right?

"I've gotten word from Lieutenant Fullbody!" One marine ran up to her stated, "He manages to capture most of the crew but the captain and the rest of them are fleeing."

Suiren nodded and points her weapon at the remaining pirates, all frozen or shaking in fear, "So, are you going to surrender or…?"

They all dropped their weapons and take to the hills, screaming apologies as they ran. She sighed before turning to the marine soldiers, "All of you, tie them up and bring them to the cells."

"Yes, ma'am!" They saluted before doing as they are told.

I sighed as I tossed the weapon in my hand aside. So many dead people… I guess you can't truly portray such terror on paper… It's definitely different in real life.

"Thanks for your help, Rein." Suiren tells me, "You manages to help push them back long enough for us to get here."

"I-It's no problem…" I stated.

How many more of these am I going to face? Especially if I'm going to join the Straw Hats… They are a magnet for such things… Can I truly be ready to… kill?

I was snapped out of it when Lulong patted me on my back. "Nice going, lass! You got balls!"

"I-I'm a woman, though…"

"You know what I mean!" He laughed. "Come on! Let's go check the condition of my house!" With that, he ran off with me in tow.

* * *

The galleon sail out in the open waters in top speed. "Damn it all…!" The pirates' captain growled. "I didn't expect to meet Fullbody and Suiren here!"

"Captain! There's a small boat to the portside!"

He then smirked, "Pillage it! No way are we leaving this place empty-handed!" He ordered, the remaining pirates roared out in agreement.

They got ready, cannons aimed low towards the small ship, ready to take the easy prey.

Only… that wasn't an easy prey.

For just a moment, the ship is sliced in two. The sea splits slightly as the two halves sink into the sea with its occupants screaming out in terror. The captain manages to stay on board of the wreckage, watching the boat slowly sail away.

He didn't know what happened, but he never been so terrified in his life. And this incident will haunt him for the rest of his days.

A man with jewel-like eyes, cut down his ship like butter.

* * *

It looks like the house is still in one piece. The cannonballs seem to have missed their district by the long mile. Not sure whether it is fate or plain dumb luck.

Either way, I'm glad the raid didn't go true. I didn't want that to happen to Lulong and his family. They are good people.

"Looks like everything is okay." He stated, the both of us in the living room checking things out, "Nothing broken, or stolen."

"That's a relief." I sighed.

"Hey guys!" A random person called out, "A boat just docked. And it caught a Sea King!"

"What?!" Lulong shouted before running out of the house, me desperately following up behind him.

When we reached the docks, there floating behind a familiar looking boat is the largest creature I have ever seen. It's the size of a humpback whale, no, it's even bigger! But wait, who caught this?

"Oh, there you are, Rein."

Wait… I know that voice. And lo and behold, Sen stepped out of the boat with a smirk, "I see that you're still alive."

"What took you?!" I shouted at him.

"Hey, currents and winds change." He stated, "Plus, I was hunting this thing." He points at his catch.

"Why, pray tell, did you do that for…?"

"Well, I was on course but then this thing came to my path and I thought, 'That's a big one!', so I chased it for a while and manages to kill it." He explained, "Also, I thought I could sell this here as well."

"…You have the most random of things to do." I stated, Sen just laughed at my retort.

"Rein, friend of yours?" Lulong asked me.

"Ah, yes, this is Sen. My… mentor, if you want to call him that…" I stated.

"Ah, I see…"

* * *

After selling part of the Sea King and keeping some of it as well as a few more supplies, I and Sen are ready to depart. It's a shame I have to leave so soon. I've come to enjoy staying here.

"Thank you for all you have done for me, Lulong." I tells him.

"Don't mention it." He laughed, "Stay aboard this time, okay?"

"Come back to visit anytime, dearie." Tein said sadly hugging me.

"I will, Tein." I stated.

"Rein." Suiren walked up to me with a smile, "You'll make an awesome marine in the future. If you're ever planning on joining, let me know. I'll throw you a few favours."

"I'll think about it." I chuckled.

Sen pulls down the sail and we are off. I waved at them calling out my goodbyes as loud as I can, but before long, we are in the open ocean once again.

Once there, I sat down and ponder on it. I need to be able to fight. At least enough to defend myself. Just being strong isn't enough to survive in the Grand Line. I turned to Sen and asked.

"Sen, can you teach me how to use a sword?"

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **And done! Another prologue chapter finished! It's almost there, guys! Almost near joining the plot! And yeah, the dragon part of this series will become clear soon!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	4. Ch 4:Learning from a Dragon!

**Chapter 4: Learning from a Dragon?!**

"You want me to teach you the sword?" Sen asked me. I nodded in response. I needed to have a way to fight, not just self-defence anymore. Most of the Straw Hats have their own unique fighting techniques, and all of them could take out many goons with ease.

Even Usopp, fucking USOPP, can hold his own well.

If I'm going to join them, I need some kind of edge of my own. And I doubt punching and kicking hard is good enough. Thus asking him.

"I took you along to train you, but not in swords." He stated, "Even if I train you in that, it would take years to properly wield one."

"Then teach me faster!" I shouted. I don't have years to train! Luffy probably reached Loguetown within a few months' time! If I missed that opportunity, I probably will be in the backlash in all the events that followed after! And I do not wish to be in the tornado that they creates!

"That's impossible!" Sen shouted, "Besides, I never said I'll teach you!"

"But I need to!" I cried.

"Why?" He asked, "Why the rush, anyway? First the Morgan question, and now the need for strength suddenly? Rein, what is going on? Who are you?"

I closed my mouth in silence. Crap, I didn't mean to be so pushy… and now Sen is suspicious of me… What do I do?

"And don't try to excuse yourself out of this." He added, "I've seen your actions since we met. You acted like you're waiting for something. Anticipating for some grand event. You always been keeping the eye on the papers, and checking out the latest wanted posters from each town!"

"Who are you waiting for?!"

…I didn't realised my actions are so obvious… Checking the papers was the only way for me to see if there's anything in the plot have happened yet. And the wanted posters is more of a check to see if Arlong is defeated yet. The timeline and date for each incident is unknown to me at this point, so that's the only way to get info.

What should I do now…? I don't any excuses for those! Should I tell him the truth? What is the truth to him? I'm some guy from another world that happens to read a story about this world through a manga some guy wrote and I'm waiting on the main character to show up some point in time?

…Yeah, I'll probably get sent to the mental hospital for that!

"If you can't say it, I won't train you anymore. I believe there's a nearby port that you can stay." He stated.

Oh hell no! I can't get thrown out now! Not that this point of time! And I can't truly survive on my own in this world! I'll be turned into a sex slave within weeks!

There's no other choice… I have to at least try to tell him!

"…I'm… actually waiting for a pirate named Monkey D. Luffy…"

"Monkey D.-?!" Sen muttered in shock, "Wait, how you know of this guy?!"

Well, no turning back now…

"I'm not from this world." I stated, "I'm from another world, one a lot different from this one. There, I was originally just some guy who happens to read a comic book called One Piece, which happens to star Luffy as the main character."

"…Wait, huh-"

"I've read the entire manga until its latest chapters!" I continued, "I know a lot of the characters, I mean people, in this world! I can name a few, Monkey D. Garp, the marine hero! Dracule Mihawk! Gol D. Roger!"

"Rein-"

"I know some of the secrets as well! Like Boa Hancock being an ex-slave to the Tenryuubito! Or that Portgas D. Ace is actually Roger's son-"

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Sen suddenly shouted. I closed my mouth in shock. Did I go too far? Was it too unbelievable?

"O-Okay…" He panted, "…no need to blurt out the most dangerous secret in the world now…"

"…" I nodded.

"Well, huh…" He looked at me numbly, "A different world, huh… That would probably explain the lack of knowledge you seems to possess…"

"Wait, you believe me…?"

"Well, I've been to the Grand Line, Paradise and New World, thousands of times." He stated, "There's been stranger things in those oceans. Although a human from another world is a new one for me."

"Grand Line…? You?" I muttered, "Never mind that, you truly believe my bizarre story? Not going to accuse me of lying?"

"Hey, you know about Ace." He stated, "That's more than enough to believe you. That secret is held only by Garp and Dandan, excluding me since old Roger told me about it."

"Old Roger…? You know him?!" I cried. This must be a joke. Sure, Oda never truly shows all of Roger's main crew members, but to meet one as my mentor?!

"What can I say, I and the captain have a close bond of comradery." He stated, "I was the Roger Pirates' Chronicler, after all."

"You're part of Roger's crew?!" What are the odds?!

"Yes, and their guide on the Grand Line too." He chuckles, before giving me a serious look, "So, that talk about knowing things… Do you know why Roger was captured?"

"He surrendered himself since he was dying of a disease, right?"

"And you know the truth of One Piece?"

Huh? The truth? "Um… no. It never reached that part yet."

"Oh, that's good…" He sighs in relief.

"Good?"

"Let's not talk about that." He stated, "Then, this… 'manga' was it? It tells you the story of this pirate named Monkey D. Luffy? That means any future events?"

"Pretty much any. But usually the ones caused by him and his future crew." I stated.

"Then, the Morgan question was…"

"It was when he pick up the first member of his crew."

"Ah… so let me guess. You want to join them?"

"…Yes…" That's the truth. If I were to survive in this crazy world, the best way is to team up with them. That's where my knowledge would work best. "That's why I need to get crazily strong as fast as I can! Ah, but no Devil Fruit please! That's just gives me a really pathetic weakness in this world."

"So… you need to become stronger in order to join them, huh?" He muttered, before smiling a little, "Well, at least you're not questing for vengeance or desiring power and all that stuff. I guess I could teach you."

"Wait, really?!" That was enough to convince him?!

"Hm… but to train you with such short time… we'll need to move to a different area…" He muttered, "The East Blue doesn't have good enough locations for it… And I doubt she would appreciate heading into the Grand Line early…"

What is he talking about? Grand Line? Are we leaving the East Blue?

"Well, that's settled, since you have told me your secret, it's only far to tell you mine." He smirked, before leaping into the ocean without warning. What is he doing? I peered over the side, trying to see where he is. A dark shadow starts to appear from under the water surface, the waves start to increase dramatically.

I took a step back just as the dark shape emerges from the water, and boy, did I not see this coming at all.

In the water, now standing in the ocean that is below its KNEES, is an enormous reptilian animal. A being of mystic that even fucking One Piece considered them a myth. A creature of intense power- IT'S A FUCKING DRAGON!

A big ass, red scaled, DRAGON!

It is way bigger than any skyscraper I have ever seen in my entire life. I think it might be bigger than the largest building in the world!

It leans its head down towards the boat I'm, allowing me to take notice of the large black horns on its head and its- wait… jewel-looking eyes…?

Don't tell me…

"S-Sen…?"

"Surprised?" The DRAGON chuckles, his voice deeper than usual.

"WHAT THE FUCK?! HOW ARE YOU A FUCKING DRAGON?!" I screamed, "What are you? A Devil Fruit user? No, wait… you're in the sea so that can't be it…"

"Nope, this is all natural." He stated.

"NONE of this is NATURAL!" I shouted at him, "Hell, I'm no biology student, but the size change doesn't make sense! I mean, you were human just moments ago!"

"Well, if you been on the Grand Line, nothing really make sense." He stated, moving his hand down under the boat before lifting it, along with me inside of it, out of the waters, "Come on, it's time to hit the road."

"H-Huh…?"

"You want to get stronger as fast as you can, right?" He stated, "Well, you won't if we stay in the East Blue. The place is just filled with idiots that are way over their heads. No, we're moving somewhere else."

"U-Um… where…?" Why do I have the sinking feeling I'm not going to like this…?

"The Calm Belt." He laughed, "All those unexplored islands are great for your quick speedy training practice."

"H-Huh…" I looked at him in terror. "You mean… the Calm Belt where all the Sea Kings lived…?"

"The one and only!"

Oh god, I'm going to die!

* * *

You know, I never thought that I would be flying in the One Piece universe, with the lack of technological development in aircraft research. The only time I might be able to experience such is during the Skypiea arc or after Thousand Sunny is finished.

Not on a dragon though.

Nope! Definitely didn't see that one coming!

And here I am, in the sky flying in the palm of a fucking DRAGON! And turns out to be my mentor!

I knew there was something inhuman about him, but a DRAGON is the last thing came to mind!

May I repeat the fact I am learning from the DRAGON!

DRAGON!

A DRAGON!

I'm never going to forget this moment as long as I am living in this world! Nope! Never! It's seared into my brain at this point.

Can I say this is the most unexpected things I have experienced ever in the history of myself? A DRAGON!

…Just one more time.

DRAGON!

…Okay I'm done.

But that begs the question. If such creatures exists, why didn't Oda mention any of them? Sure, there have been mentions of dragons in the latest chapters, like Kin'emon's history with them, or the whole dragon slaying deal with Ryoma.

But never like glimpse or sightings of them anywhere.

"Hey, Sen."

"Gotten over the shock?" He asked cheekily.

"Nope, still a little terrified…" I tells him, "I was just wondering. What are you?"

"Hm? I'm a dragon."

"No, no. I mean, you said it yourself that you were part of Roger crew at one point." I stated, "But in the manga, you were never mentioned at all. A dragon in the crew of the Pirate King would definitely be eye-catching."

"Oh, that's a little complicated but I'll give you a brief rundown." He stated, "Long story short, dragons have been around for millenniums now. We were one of the few creatures that existed WAY before humans even evolved from primates."

"We were around for so long, that we pretty much made an entire civilizations of ourselves all over the place. Then, a lot things happened here and there, then the World Government came to be, and we're retreated into a life of nomads. You'll be surprised how many dragons are there in the world right now."

"So… Dragons are pretty much the original humans, in a way…?" There have been stories like that, of previous civilisations of some unknown creatures that was on earth before humans.

"In a sense yes, but not entirely true." He stated, "When human civilisations came to be, we were way more advanced. There lead to some thinking they are better and tried to rule over them, which in the end backfired on themselves. At first, we became a reclusive race, observing the world of humans and how they advanced. We have records of them, all previous kingdoms that came and gone, all matter of history and so forth."

"Records of history…" Wait… could it be… "Are you guys the ones that made the poneglyphs?"

"Giving your circumstances, I'm not that surprised you've heard of them." He stated, "But no, we're not the ones who made them. No, humans made them."

"Ah, damn…" Thought I found the answer of the fandom's biggest mystery. So close… "Hey, wait… all dragons I have read about are known for their long lives… Sen, how old are you?"

"I dunno. I lost count once I reached a thousand."

He's over a thousand years old?! Damn, I'm learning from quite an experienced person… But hang on… that actually puts him near where the Blank Century has occurred!

Should I ask him about that…?

…

…

..

No, I shouldn't. No spoilers for me. That's my job for the Straw Hats. Like Cross and Jones! Shouts out to them!

Besides, that knowledge is useless to me right now.

"But then, why weren't you that known?" I asked. He didn't seem to get to the point.

"Oh, because I was in human form the whole time." He stated, "The only ones that know are Roger himself and Rayleigh."

"Wait, that's it?"

"Yup."

…Huh, that actually made some kind of sense.

"By the way, since you know pretty much every secret in the world…" Sen asked, "Do you happened to know what happened to Ohara?"

Ohara? That's random. "Yeah. Buster Call pretty destroyed them because they were getting close to the Blank Century."

"I see…" He sighed, "I thought as much… And what of its last survivor? You know where she is at this point in time?"

Okay, this is completely out of nowhere. Why would he want to know about Robin? Is he related to that incident in some way? "Not completely sure myself… But the Straw Hats will meet with her in the near future. Save her from herself, too."

"Ah, that's a relief…"

"…Are you… part of Ohara in some way?"

"In a sense, yes." He nodded, "I'm, kind of… part of their little research group. Never there when the attack happened though. I was on Roger's ship at the time."

"Oh. I'm… sorry for your loss…"

"Eh, it's been over twenty years, I'm pretty much done mourning." He stated, "Not the first time I outlived my friends. Though I am worried about Nico Robin, though…"

"She'll be fine." I tells him, "As an avid One Piece fan, I can assure you that she is going to be in good hands."

"If you say so. Then I'll leave her to you." He stated, "At any case, we've arrived."

That took note as I notices the lack of clouds in the sky. It was… jarring to say the least, I can still see clouds on the other side, but it's like they vanished as soon as they reached that patch of sea. And the lack of humidity and wind, it's like being in an enclosed room with no windows.

And that's already an unsettling metaphor in of its self.

After a few more moments in the air, Sen landed onto an island filled with unique flora and an absurd geology. A huge lush forest surrounded by steep cliffs, with waterfalls falling down on all sides, in near the shoreline, followed by what seems to be several other small pockets in the cliffs that are large enough to serve as its own biology biome.

Quite a unique island, even by One Piece standard. It's like the island was created by some biologist as an experiment to-

Wait a minute here…

"This is the island of Grand Terra." Sen tells me, he changed back into his human form, "As you might have guessed, it's a man-made island created by a few dragon scientists long ago as to study most biology in the world. The 'pockets' in the earth are filled with several different species of different parts of the world. The area we are in is for species native to the Grand Line."

"Isn't that the worst part?!" I shouted at him.

"Not for what we're doing." He stated, "You wish to learn how to use a sword, right? I can teach you my style, but with your current physical state, you'll pull multiple muscles at once if you even attempt to. No, you're going to do some combat experience training first as well as some basic muscle building regime."

"So… why are we here again…?"

"This particular forest is filled with the most competitive carnivorous animals and plants in the whole of the Grand Line, and that includes the New World." He explained, I looked at him in horror, "For the first few weeks, this would be your training ground and your resting area. Everything you would need is here."

"Wait, are you tossing me into a survival test all of the sudden?!" I cried. I don't even know any real survival skill at all! I would die within hours!

"Nah, I'll be here." He stated, "But that's a good idea. You could use some survival skills."

Oh god, I regret even asking him now!

"After that, THEN we'll move to sword training. We'll move to a different pocket, but I'll tell you later AFTER you start running."

"Running…?"

*GROWL*

I froze, feeling a slight hot breath from behind me. I slowly turned my head around, an extremely large tiger looking at me with a hungry look in his eyes.

"Good luck!"

OH FUCK YOU!

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **There, it's a little short, since I'm rushing to get to the plot, but there we are.**

 **And no, while I think that dragons are an actual thing in One Piece, they are not like that canonically. This is just what I imagine dragons to be.**

 **So, a little fun fact: I originally wasn't going to write a SIOC story at all. My One Piece fic was originally supposed to focus on Sen. HE was originally going to join the Straw Hats as a sort of wise figure in their little group of outlaws.**

 **He is going to be the quirky grandfather who knows a lot of things but trolls pretty much everyone with that knowledge.**

 **And is going to be my most OP character of all time.**

 **But as I start to take notice of certain fics, I start to change my mind on it and make a SI fic with Sen as a mentor character.**

 **The OP-ness is going to show in later chapters so look forward to people getting utterly destroy by him in the future.**

 **And another thing, I like to thank the amount of favourites I'm getting for this fic.**

 **Maybe because it's a more popular parody but to have that many favourites and alert for a fic that I posted just a week ago, I'm utterly blown away by how many actually liked this.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	5. Ch 5:Interrupting a meal? Really!

**Chapter 5: Interrupting a meal? Really?!**

It's been few more months since we started training on the island. It was hell, to be honest, and I'm not exaggerating anything!

When Sen said that it has the carnivorous animals, he isn't joking, but he is under-estimating what he meant by carnivorous animals.

I was not just chased by an enormous tiger (Which looks a lot like the ones that young Luffy, Sabo and Ace used to ran from, ironically enough), but there are velociraptors, lions for some reason, enormous snakes, wolves the size of a house, a million species of venus flytraps, even a fucking T-rex! And I think I saw it battling against what looked like to be King Kong once.

I manages to get away from them, only to get found and chased all over again. It was until Sen stepped in that I survived the first night, but then he just left right after and the whole get away and chased thing happened all over again.

But I survived, and I did well on that. It was a blur, but I remember being completely frustrated by this and decided to fight back with a rock that I seem to recall using it to smash into the tiger's eye, and ripping out its other eye before trying to crush its brain via its sockets.

Yeah, when I get desperate, I'll do anything.

Not sure how I did it, but I won, and got my first meal in weeks. And then Sen shows up, helped me cook the meat before disappearing without a word, again.

After a while, Sen finally picked me up and starts my sword training.

It was tough, he have some crazy regimes and he made me carry on with my how exercising routine from before. Which isn't that hard now with what now usurp stamina I now possessed. And the fact that I know how to hunt and start fires now.

I still don't get why I have to get the shit beat out of me every day by him though. He basically tied me to a log, and proceeds to beat me up hard with a wooden sword (Which I swear came out from his rucksack among other things. Is that some kind of 4D pocket or something?).

But despite the hellish few months, the results are undeniable. While still retaining my whole sexy body (I'm a guy on the inside, but that doesn't mean that I don't appreciate how beautiful my body is), my limps are now firm with muscles, and I actually formed somewhat of a six-pack while not too defined.

My short hair now reaches passed by shoulders and down by back. I never really take care of it but it is smooth and silky despite it. I'm not sure if it's more of manga logic but hey, it works.

And the sword techniques he taught me, I'll remember them all by heart.

Or more like I can't forget them all, with how scary Sen can be when I failed a certain movement.

Kenichi is correct. Humans can't forget the scariest part of their lives even if they want to.

Today was the last day of our agreed training time. I don't know when in the timeline I am right now, but my best bet is a week before the whole Arlong event happen, which means that Sanji has yet to join the crew.

I waited near the shoreline for Sen to show up. He usually fly around the area for a while before coming down, but today is a bit later than usual. I wore back the clothes I've bought at Loguetown, the outfit from Risa kept in my own bundle on the boat. I also have a katana around my waist, one with a black handle and sheathe and silver guard and pommel.

"He's late…" I muttered to myself.

And just I said that, a shadow appeared from the waters, revealing to be a large Sea King, one with blue scales and a lion face. I normally would be terrified by this, but this one is a little different the usual ones.

"Hey! Leo!" I cheered, the Sea King lowering its head for me to pat him.

Leo is a lion Sea King, a prideful bunch even for a Sea King, but Leo is different. You see, Leo actually beached on the island a month ago, and he was starving when I found him. As such, I gave him the dinosaur that I managed to cook up, manages to convince Sen to help push him back into the water, and the rest was history.

He keeps coming back, mostly for food, and we somewhat bonded with him. I actually swam around the area without any real danger thanks to him. I was surprised by how easy for me to actually tame one. I'm sure going to miss him.

"Your food's over that way." I pointed, he nodded before swimming towards the pile of cooked meat and starts devouring it.

At that same moment, Sen in his dragon form landed in front of me, in his arm is a large Sea King, a blue eel-like one. "Sorry about the wait." He tells me.

"Why the Sea King?" I asked.

"Oh, this?" He stated, "Well, I'm planning on treating you to a restaurant after this. One of the best, and this is mostly my fee for them."

"Is that ethical?"

"Who knows?" He laughed, "But the owner is an ex-pirate so it evens out."

Wait, that sounds oddly familiar…

"Is the restaurant name happens to be Baratie?"

"Oh yeah, it is." He nodded, "…let me guess. Monkey D. Luffy is going to be there?"

"That's the idea, yes." I nodded. Baratie. It's the third last arc before the Straw Hats left the East Blue all together. If they are not there, my best bet would be to wait for them at Loguetown, so I hope we arrive before Don Krieg shows up.

"Lucky for you, huh?" He chuckles, "Just give me a second to prepare the Sea King." The dragon then proceeds to head into the forest with its prize in his hand.

After a while, and a few gross-sounding squashing, he had the sea creature wrapped up in a large cloth bundle the size of a whale. And I think I saw a few organs in the distance, those are the size of houses!

"All set!" He smirked before entering the ocean again. I looked at Leo, the lion beast looking at me with sad-looking eyes. Oh god, I feel so bad now! When could Sea Kings looked so cute?! (By the way, I like cute things as much as any person out there so this has nothing to do with my now female autonomy.)

"Sorry Leo, I can't bring you along." I tells him, he then makes a soft purring sound, god that sounds so sad, "I'm definitely going to miss you, pal." He kneeled down in front of me, allowing me to give him a hug to his head. A soft growl and he dived back into the ocean.

"Let's go now." Sen calls me, his boat in his hand kneeling in front of me, allowing me to board the boat. Soon after, we took off into the skies, the Grand Terra Island shrinking into the horizon.

* * *

After a few minutes of flying, we returned to the East Blue. According to Sen, we landed a few miles away from where the Baratie usually anchored, allowing us to sail the rest of the way.

That gave me some time for me to think.

If this was after Don Krieg has attacked, or during, we will be interrupting in the flow of the plot. Nami would have already set sail towards Arlong Park, and Mihawk would probably be in the battle with Zoro, or after. If that's the case, I might have a few ways to enter into the fray.

One, I could help with the cook in defending Baratie.

Two, I convinced Sen to sail towards Arlong Park.

Three, if I'm really lucky and is just after Zoro's defeat, I could help him and still head towards Arlong Park.

Either way, I would be helping out with the Straw Hats, and maybe impressed Luffy enough to allow me to join.

"Rein, we're here."

Sen's voice snapped me out of my thoughts, I looked in front of our boat and saw the floating fish-decor restaurant. And I wasn't sure I would be thanking god or not.

Baratie is still in good condition, with the obvious hole at the top.

And a familiar goat-themed pirate ship is docked next to it.

The all-so infamous black flag fluttering in the air with the straw hat Jolly Roger imprinted on it.

All of that, with no sign of a battered galleon in sight.

We made it before Don Krieg attacked. Maybe just as they arrived at Baratie. Maybe it is during the three days of work Luffy is stuck doing. Thank the heavens for our luck. This make things a lot easier.

"Never seen that Jolly Roger before…" Sen stated, "I take it that's the ship for the Straw Hats?"

"Yep." I nodded, "The first ship in their voyage, the Going Merry." I immediately feel a little nostalgia from it. I've watch the anime since I was a kid, when I didn't know what the hell is anime. And looking at this ship, this ship that would have served the Straw Hats in their amazing adventures in the Grand Line…

All the major moments in the manga/anime just starts flowing into my mind.

Alabasta.

Skypiea.

Water Seven.

All of them beyond epic in my mind, and I'm going to find a way to join in.

"Rein? You there?" Sen asked, waving his hand in front of me worriedly.

"Oh, sorry, got caught up there…" I laughed a little.

"Well, then we made it in time?" He asked me.

I nodded, "Definitely, in the best time we could be."

"Okay, then let's have our meal first then!" He stated as he docked the boat near the floating restaurant.

We entered the place, the dining hall filled with all sorts of people from all sorts of life. The clattering of utensils echoed in the air, conversations all over the tables muddled together into a mush of sounds and words.

I got to hand it to Oda, he knows how to portray a fine dining establishment.

"My, my, what a beauty to enter through our doors~"

A voice called out, the familiar blonde spinning about before kneeling before me and taking my hand, "And a truly fine one at that. How may I serve you, my angel?"

…I think I witnessed first-hand the flirty nature of Sanji, and I do not feel comfortable about this.

Fullbody, I can handle since he is flirty due to his self-entitlement.

Sanji, on the other hand… I can see his attraction, feel it, and even smell it! He is a grand pervert that leaps from one beautiful lady after another, and he fully embraced it.

Chivalry or not, that is still not covering his perverted nature.

"Um… a table for two…?"

"This way, milady." He nodded at my answer, before getting back up and leading me towards the table- is his hand on my hip?!

"I see Eggplant is a proper nickname for you." Sen pointed out, Sanji stopping in his tracks. The blonde chef looked, no GLARE, at him with a promise of murder.

"And why are _you_ here?" He spat out.

"I'm with her." He tells him, "Oh, and tell Zeff I've got a package for him." He jerks his thumb out the entrance. "It's with the boat."

"Tch, always in my shitty way…" He grumbling, before gesturing to an empty table, "Milady, I apologized but I have errands to run. Your table to over there and I'll be right there if you need me." He glares at Sen one more time before stomping out of the restaurant.

"You know him?" I asked Sen.

"Yeah, when he was still a kid." He stated, "Great cook, but has a little attitude issue. Usually with men, though. He treats ladies like they were goddesses. I blame Zeff for that."

We sat down on the table, I looking around for any signs of a straw hat in the crowd. I then took notice of a moss of green hair at one of the table, and a pair of goggles.

Yup, Zoro and Usopp is here. That means Luffy is still working… I don't see Nami though…

"May I get your orders, sir and ma'am?"

I turned and nearly screamed. In the manga, Patty's character design is more comedic than anything. But here… it just looks wrong, like his smile is so obviously forced and doesn't fit in with his face at all. Not to mention his arms, it doesn't look like a person arms at all, more like tumours.

Two big, bulging, arm tumours.

"Oh, tell Zeff that Sen is here. He'll know my order." Sen stated, "And Rein?"

"Oh! A salad, please."

"A salad? That's it?" He asked confused, "We came all this way to Baratie and you ordered a _salad_?"

"Hey, I've been on a meat diet for months!" I stated, "So excuse me for craving some vegetables for once."

"Eh, whatever." He shrugged, "And a bottle of wine as well."

"Of course!" Patty 'smiled', "Back in few minutes!" He then walked away, I looking at the table where Zoro and Usopp are sitting. They seems to be having a meal too, Zoro more of drinking a bottle of what assume is ale, or beer.

This marks it probably right before Don Krieg arrive here. The Going Merry is still here after all. But how long before Don Krieg arrive, I do not know. Hopefully it's after my meal. I haven't eaten any greens in months!

"Here you are, milady~" Sanji served down a bowl of seasoned vegetables before me, along with a cup of sweet fruits as well, "The fruit cup is from me, a show of my love to you~"

"Oh, uh… thanks…?" Geez, and I thought my cousin's pick-up lines are bad.

"Oh yeah, and the plate of Sea King steak is yours." He also served Sen a plate of a thick cut of steak with a side of vegetables along with a glass bottle of wine. Is that what Sea King meat looked when grilled? It looks like a normal steak to me.

"Thank you." He grinned, "Give Zeff my thanks."

"Whatever, shit-head." He muttered, before smiling at me, "Enjoy my love-filled meal, my angel~!" He then spun, yes he spun I'm not making this up, away. Looking it at reality is very different from the pages.

"Might as well dig in!" Sen tells me, digging into the meat with a smile, "OH~! Zeff knew exactly how I like it!"

I followed suit with my own meal, tasting the well-seasoned greens with a smile. Oh man, this taste so good! The seasoning is just right, not overwhelming all the while pairing with all of the vegetables in the bowl.

"Looks good~!"

A voice caught our attention, the face of a familiar straw hat wearing pirate looking at Sen's meal with drool dripping from the side of his mouth. I froze, Luffy standing right there with an apron around his waist.

"Oi! Chore boy!" Sanji shouted, kicking the future pirate king in the head before dragging him away, "Don't go bothering the customers, you idiot!"

"But, Sanji, I'm hungry…!" He whined.

"You just ate an hour ago!"

I have no idea what to think, or to do. The captain of my possible future crew, is being dragged away by Sanji. I know I have at least ask to join their crew, but right now…? This is before Don Krieg, so Luffy no doubt isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

But there's another factor.

This is the part where Nami left for Arlong… Should I interfere someway? Convince her not to do it? But if I do… what are the consequences? And can I even convince her? How?

"It's Don Krieg's ship!" One customer shouted out in shock, catching me and Sen's attention.

"A skull with two hourglasses at its side… there's no doubt about it! That's the Krieg Pirates' flag!"

"Why is he here?!"

Unknown to us, a large galleon has sailed up towards the restaurant. We looked out from the window, the large ship slowly made visible to us. And like in the manga, it's all in tatters, barely holding it together.

Just looking at it is prove of what the Grand Line is capable of. What people in that sea is truly capable of. And what Mihawk is capable of.

"That ship is in complete tatters!" One of the chefs stated out.

"Those markings…" Sen muttered, "So _he_ did them in, huh?"

I looked at Sen in confusion, does he know Mihawk by chance?

But before I can ask any more questions, the doors swung opened, and two figures walked feverishly through. One of them is being carried by the other by the arm, the larger of the two in a fur-lined coat under a patterned shirt and purple pants while the one holding him up in grey opened shirt over a black t-shirt and grey pants.

Don Krieg and Gin.

If I didn't know what was going to happen next, I would truly believe Krieg is truly starving to death. He looked pale, skin sinking into his cheeks slightly and the look of defeat in his eyes.

"Sorry for… intruding, but… could I have… some water… and… food…?" Krieg gasped out, "If it's… money… I've got… plenty…"

"Wha… the heck?" Patty muttered out, "That weak-looking guy is Krieg…?"

"So, he ran away." Sen muttered, "And he paid the price." He then continued with his meal.

Don Krieg wavered a bit, before collapsing onto the floor, much to Gin's shock, "Don Krieg!" He looked over to the chefs gathered near the entrance, "I'm begging you! Please! Give him some food and water! Please save my captain! He'll die at this rate!"

"Ahahaha! This is just perfect!" Patty laughed, "So, this is what the infamous pirate Don Krieg looks like?!"

"Please! We have money this time!" Gin cried, "We're paying customers!"

"Hey! Contact the marines!" The chef tells the others, "This is the perfect chance for them to arrest him! Don't let him have even a morsel of food!"

"T-That's right! W-Who knows what he'll do once he gets back on his feet!"

"This is retribution for all the crimes he's committed!"

"It's only right that he should die after all he's done!"

One after another, the customers all shouted out they're complains, their anger towards the pirate. I'm not sure how to take it. Sure, Don Krieg is pretty much an arrogant asshole that deserves everything that happens to him. But to starve to death? That's a pretty harsh way to die.

"I… I won't do anything…" Krieg begged on his knees, "If you… give me food, I… I promise I'll quietly withdraw from here… So please… please… help… me…"

"D-Don Krieg! Please stop!" Gin pleaded, "A great man like you shouldn't be lowering his head! It's too shamefull!"

I have to applaud to Gin. He knows loyalty like no other. It's a shame he swore loyalty to the wrong man.

"I'm begging you… I don't mind if it's leftovers or whatever! Please…! Just… give me anything…!"

And I have to give Krieg a prize, for acting that is. I almost feel sorry for him. _Almost_.

"Hmph. Trying to earn some sympathy-?"

"Move it, Patty."

With that, Sanji kicked Patty away, before walking up to them with a plate of fried rice and a bottle in hand. "Here, Gin. Give this to him."

"Sanji!"

"T-Thank you!" Krieg cried as he starts to devour the meal with gusto.

"Hey Sanji! Take that food back this instant!" The other chef, I believe that is… Carue? No, that's the duck… Carne! That's it! "Do you have any idea what kind of man he is?!"

"The ruler of the East Blue, the King of Deceptions! That's Don Krieg! He started out by disguising as a Marine after escaping prison! He then proceed to kill the officer in charge of the ship and took it over! That's how he became a pirate!"

"Since then, he's attacked ports, towns, and other ships by hanging a Marine's flag… and when attacking his enemies, he hangs a white flag to take them by surprise… He's a man who'll stoop to anything in order to win! That's how he made his way to the top!"

"His strength ain't no exaggeration, either! You really think that he'll just leave after eating?! That utterly impossible for him! Letting a demon like him starve to death is for the good of this world-!"

"Thanks for the meal."

Without any warning, Krieg lariats Sanji and sends him flying across the hall. He stood back up, the façade he played gone and now there's a look of desire, of greed in his eyes.

"D-Don Krieg! This is different from what you promised!" Gin cried, "I guided you here because you promised not to harm this restaurant! Not only that, that man is our savior!"

"Ah, that was a great meal…" He stated, as he squeezed down on Gin's shoulder hard, his crewmate crying out in pain, "I feel like my normal self again…"

"Gin!" Luffy cried out.

"Nice restaurant you've got here." Krieg stated, pushing Gin aside, "I'll take it."

With that declaration, all of the customers all took off to their ships to get away from the infamous pirate, leaving me and Sen still in our table.

"There it is…" I muttered. I never really liked Don Krieg, in the manga or otherwise. He was shown as an arrogant prick that is way, WAY, over his head and his confidence is all hot air. He didn't even considered that Mihawk is just that good with his sword and just assumed that he has a devil fruit.

"My ship's all worn out, so I've been wanting a new one." He stated, "Once my business is done with you, I'll have you get off this ship. Right now, I have around a hundred of my men on my ship, and they are all starving and critically wounded. So prepare enough water and food to feed a hundred men. There's a few who've already starved to death, so make it quick!"

"You're asking us to willingly feed a hundred pirates, knowing that they're going to attack us and steal our ship later?!" Carne shouted, "We refuse!"

"Refuse?" The pirate laughed, "I think you're misunderstanding something here. I wasn't asking you to do it. I'm _ordering_ you! And nobody disobeys _my_ orders."

It's not that terrifying, but I got to give credit where's credit's due. Krieg can be terrifying if he wants to be. His big stature only helped in the intimidation station. But it's not enough to scare me, not when I've fought fucking dinosaurs, and they are way more terrifying than him.

"Sanji, you bastard!" Patty shouted at him, "It's because of you that we're in this mes- hey! Where are you going?!"

"To the kitchen, dumbass." He stated, spitting out some blood from his lips, "In order to prepare food for a hundred people."

"WHAT?!"

"Wise choice." Krieg smirked.

"Hold it right there, Sanji!" All the chefs surrounds the blonde cook with guns pulled and aimed at him. "Who the hell do you think you are?! Krieg's secret agent or something? We ain't allowing you take one step into the kitchen. We have _enough_ of your insane and reckless behavior!"

"Fine." Sanji stated, raising his arms to the side, "Stop me if you wish. Go ahead, shoot."

"W-Wha…?!"

Sen actually stopped eating to take notice.

"I know that they're nothing but scum who aren't worth saving." He added, "But to me, none of that matters. Thinking about the consequences of feeding a person, that's just a big hassle."

"A cook should freely be able to feed anyone who is starving! Isn't that ideal?!"

Hearing that first hand, I have no idea what to think. I've known that Sanji have a chivalrous streak, but to actually see and hear him say it, it actually turnaround my original impression of him. Well, most of him anyway…

Of course, that cool moment have to end. Patty manages to get behind him and knocked him aside.

"Patty!"

"Hold him down!" He tells the other chefs, in his hand is a large bundle, "Sanji! I know you feed the customers I chase away from time to time. I'm not going to say who's right and who's wrong for all those times, but this time, it's all your fault! So don't you dare do anything unnecessary and screw us over more!"

"I'll protect this restaurant myself! Fortunately, we only have Don Krieg to deal with. What can one man do against all of us?!" He pulls the cloth off and pulls out a lobster bazooka, "This is the Baratie, the restaurant that deals with pirates of all sorts on a daily basis! We're more than prepared to handle any kind of customer!"

"If you finished your meal, how about some dessert?! Indigestion Meatball Cannon!" He pulls the trigger, firing a cannonball straight at Krieg.

"You son of a-!"

The ammunition hits him hard, the explosion knocking him out of the doors onto the balcony, the doors blown off its hinges. "Agh, damn it, I ended up destroying the entrance as well." Patty sighs, "The owner is going to have my head for this…"

"It's fine." Carne assures him, "It's just collateral from protecting the restaurant."

"What about the underlings on the ship?" Sanji asked.

"Well, maybe we oughta butter his ship up and roast it with fire?"

"That's the best dessert you've got, you lousy cook?!"

Everyone stared in shock, as Don Krieg walked back through the doorway, his coat and shirt all gone revealing a full set of gold-plated armor with a black cape. His Jolly Roger on the pauldrons. "Serving that piece of crap for dessert… this is the worst restaurant I've ever been to…"

"Whoa! His body's gold and shiny!" Luffy stated.

"That bastard and his fancy armor!" The chefs picked up their rather unique weaponry, large forks, spoons and knives? "Get him!"

"You annoying little pricks!" Krieg's armor opened up, revealing several gun barrels between the gaps as well as pair of pistols in his hands, the bullets flew out and hitting all the chefs. Thankfully, the bullets never hit anywhere fatal.

"You damn worms think you can defy me?! I'm the strongest there is!" He declared, "This steel arm, more powerful than anyone! This body of steel, tougher than anyone else! And this diamond fist that can pulverize anything! My entire body is a finely tuned weapon!"

"I'm the fleet admiral of fifty ships and the commander of five thousand men! I've won every single battle I've ever been in! There's no other man more worthy of the title [Don] than I! So if I tell you to prepare food for my men, you shut up and do it! Nobody goes against Don Krieg!"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Sen's laughter cuts through the tense atmosphere, my mentor laughing his head off while trying to stay on his chair. I just stared him in mock horror, the others by the corner of my eyes are looking at him in shock.

"W-Who's that…?"

"Isn't that Sen?"

"Sen? The one that comes here once every few months with a Sea King as payment?"

"T-That idiot!" Sanji muttered, "He's going to get himself killed!"

"Oi!" Krieg walked up to us, Sen barely managing to keep his laughter down, "You think this is some kind of comedy act?"

"Damn straight it is!" He stated, the pirate admiral's brow twitches a little, "All those things you said? The whole strongest there is? That's a complete and utter joke!"

"What did you say?!"

"You've heard what I said." Sen smirked, "You think that wearing some armor and having all those guns make you strong? It only shows how pathetically weak you are! Admiral, my ass! You are nothing but a dumb little turtle hiding in his shell!"

*BANG*

With a punch, Sen was send flying across the hall, crashing into the wall. I looked him in shock, did he let himself get hit? I've seen him tanked hits from fucking King Kong back on Grand Terra!

"Do _you_ have anything to say, little girl?" Krieg asked, he actively trying to intimidate me and it's failing really hard.

Well, might as well test something. I reel back my leg and kicks him right where the sun doesn't shine. And then is hit with a resistance of metal, Krieg's smirk widened, "Do you really think I didn't think of that?"

"That thought did cross my mind, yes."

I then sucker-punched him in the face, his nose breaking under my fist. I manages to push him back slightly, and maybe broke parts of his face from the groans of pain I'm hearing. Not wanting to handle the aftermath, I ran off and stood next to Luffy, the other chefs have their jaws slacked so much that it touches the floor.

"…What?"

"Wow, you're awesome!" Luffy stated in awe.

"Hehehe, thanks…" I rubbed the back of head in embarrassment.

"Your amazing courage have moved my heart, angel!" Sanji danced his… dance? Is his leg a literal tornado? How is that physically possible?!

"Thanks… I guess…?" I then remembered, "Oh, and the name's Rein. Not angel."

"Rein-chwan, is it?! Such a cute name~!"

Okay, that's a bit much.

"You little bitch…" Krieg growled as he straightened his nose, "I'm going to-!"

At that moment, Zeff dropped a huge sack in front of him. "Here. Enough food for a hundred men." He stated, "So hurry up and bring it to your men."

"D-Did they just say… Zeff…?"

"Sir! How could you give them food?!" A chef cried out, "Just what's the meaning of this?! Once those pirates recover, they'll take over our restaurant!"

"That's only _if_ they still have any fighting spirit left."

"Huh?"

"Isn't that right?" Zeff looked Krieg in the eye, "Defeated warriors of the Grand Line?"

"WHAT?! Don Krieg, _defeated_?!"

"The strongest man of the East Blue, the pirate admiral of fifty ships… Even he was utterly defeated by the Grand Line?!"

"You're… Red-Leg Zeff!" Don Krieg stated, "So you were alive, the peerless captain and cook of his own pirate crew."

"So what if I'm alive?" Zeff asked, "It's got nothing to do with you. As you can see, I'm living as a mere cook now."

"Hahaha… interesting to put it like that… but from the way I see it, you have no other choice _but_ to live as a cook." The pirate admiral stated, "With the way you are now, you can't wear your infamous 'Red Shoes'."

"To speak about Red-Leg Zeff, is to speak about the master of kicking who refused to use his hands in battle! The pirate captain whose kicks are destructive enough to break rocks and leave imprints on steel! Your nickname: Red-Leg, refers to your legs that would be dyed in the blood of your enemies after each fight."

"Though I've heard from rumors that you died in a shipwreck, it seems that you've managed to survive. Although, it would be at the cost of one your precious 'Red-Legs'. With just one leg, you shouldn't be able to fight anymore."

I took notice of Sanji's expression, I think I see some sign of regret and pain. I don't know why, but I've been able to take notice of people's expression more than when I was on Earth.

"I may not be able to fight anymore, but as long I still have my hands, I can still cook." Zeff tells him, "But what exactly are you getting at?"

"Red-Leg Zeff!" Krieg shouted, "You're a man who once braved the waters of the Grand Line, the devil's hideout itself! Not only that, you've returned unharmed. You must have kept a log during your voyage of the Grand Line. I demand that you hand that log over to me!"

"You have been to the Grand Line, old man?" Luffy asked.

"Ah, yes, I have." Zeff nodded, "You are correct to assume I have kept a log, and it's still with me to this day. But I won't hand that over to you. That log is the pride of me and my men that venture into the Grand Line together. It's much too valuable for the likes of you!"

"Then I'll just _steal_ it from you!" The pirate admiral declared, "It's true that I came back from the Grand Line defeated, but even so, I'm _still_ the mighty Don Krieg!"

"The Grand Line, the ocean shrouded in darkness, the mention of it alone causes men to tremble in their boots… I have enough power to conquer that sea! Enough manpower! Enough _ambition_! I only lacked information, that's my only flaw! I simply did not know enough. That's why I'll steal your travel log, and your ship!"

"Like hell you are! If we lose this ship, we've nowhere to go!"

"That's right! All the cooks here were chased out of other restaurants before finding a place here!"

"Owner Zeff was the only one that accepted us! He's our benefactor!"

"We ain't losing our home to you pirates!"

"Silence!" Krieg shouted, "The difference between us is as clear as day! I've proved it to you! Don't you forget about it! Once I obtain Zeff's travel log, I'll reassemble my fleet, and take on the Grand Line once more! I'll find One Piece, and be King of the Pirates!"

"Hold it right there!" Luffy took a step towards him, "The man who is going to become King of the Pirates, is ME!"

That declaration echoed into me. It wasn't some declaration of victory, it wasn't some pride talking here. No, it's pure conviction. The conviction of accomplish his impossible dreams, even if death blocks his path.

I know that he would find One Piece; that much is certain in the manga.

But to hear him declare it like that, it's not just a catchphrase anymore. It's fact. Fact that he _will_ become King of the Pirates.

And I wanted to see him do it now.

"Hey! Stand down, kid!" Patty cried, "Or you'll be killed!"

"I'm not standing down." Luffy stated, "Especially on this point."

"Did you say something, you little brat?" Krieg scoffed, "I'll be nice and let that comment slide…"

"It's fine. You don't have to let it slide." The straw hat pirate stated with a smirk, "I'm only stating the truth."

"This ain't a game."

"Yeah, I know."

I stood frozen, unable to move at that declaration. I could hear Usopp and Zoro arguing in the background I didn't take notice until they spoke up. "You planning on rumble, Luffy?" Zoro asked, "Need a hand?"

"Oh, Zoro, Usopp. No, it's fine. You can just sit down."

"Haha…Ahahahaha! Those are your crewmates?!" Krieg laughed, "A rather small crew you got there!"

"What are you talking about?! I've got two more as well!"

"Hey, you just counted me in, didn't you…?" Sanji muttered.

"Don't joke with me, brat!" Krieg shouted, "Even with my fleet of fifty ships and crew five thousand men, we were utterly decimated by the devilish sea in just seven days!"

"S-Seven days?!"

"The entire Krieg pirate fleet… annihilated in just a week?!"

"J-Just what happened to them…?"

"Did you hear that?!" Usopp cried, "Fifty ships! All gone in a week!"

"Heh, sounds interesting…" Zoro smirked.

"Even as a bluff, your comments just now shows how completely ignorant you are to reality!" The pirate admiral stated, "If there's one thing I hate, its empty boasting like yours! Keep saying that, and I'll kill you right on the spot!"

He picks up the sack of food, "As for the rest of you, I'll give you a little extension. I'm going to give this food to my subordinates, so I suggest you leave this place within that time if you don't want to die. The only things I need are this ship and Zeff's log. If any of you still feel like dying even after I warned you, then so be it! I'll bury you to the bottom of the sea for eternity!" He then walks out of the restaurant, the sack of food on his shoulders.

Once we all are alone, I hear Gin starting to sob, "Sanji… please forgive me…" He stated, "I have no idea… this isn't the way it supposed to happen…! I… I…!"

"There's no need to apologize." Zeff tells him, "The cooks of this restaurant acted out of their free will. This is just the result of that."

"Sir! How could _you_ of all people side with Sanji on this?!" Patty asked.

"That's right! He's the one to blame for all of this!"

"He just want to destroy this restaurant that's so important to you!"

"Oi, Sanji!" One of the chefs points at the blonde cook, "Were you planning on using this mess to become the next Head Chef?! Or have to completely lost it?! Tell us the truth-!"

"Silence! You fucking numbskulls!" Everyone all stopped their arguing, looking at their boss in confusion, "Have any one of you ever been hungry enough to die? Do you have any idea how terrifying and painful it is to be stuck in this ocean with no food or water?!"

"W-What do you mean, sir…?"

"If you got time to be crying over some split milk, then just leave!" Zeff pointed to the back, "The backdoor is open."

"…I… I'm going to stay." Patty stated, picking up his fork-weapon, "I wouldn't be to live with myself if I just left."

"Same here." Another cook nodded, "This is the place I live and work at. It's not like I've got anywhere else to go…"

One by one, the cooks all picked up their weapons, stand ready to fight off the fleet. I got to admit, seeing such dedication towards one place is quite rare on Earth. Seeing such people in real-life, it's kind of nice.

"W-Wait! What are you all doing?!" Gin cried, "Haven't you realized how powerful the Don is?! You all need to run away!"

"Gin." Sanji stated, smoking his cigarette, "Let me tell you something. As a cook, it's my duty to feed anyone that are starving. But…" He sits down on one of the chairs, "The ones who're coming to attack this ship are those who've already eaten. So you better not complain when I kill them. If someone is planning on stealing this ship, then I'll kill that person without a second thought, even if it is you. Got that?"

"To save someone, then kill him afterwards? You're one messed-up guy, Sanji."

"Shut the fuck up, you shitty-cook."

I manages to get my thoughts in check, then I realized that Sen is still in that crashed hole in the wall, "Hey, Sen! You there?!" I called out.

"…he's gone, you know." Zeff stated, "So stop playing dead."

"…Ha, you got it." Sen slowly gets back up from where he was sent flying, everyone in the room all stares at him with eye bulging in shock.

"EHHH?!"

"You could have easily taken him out, you know." Zeff tells him, Sen walking up towards him patting away the dust on his shoulders.

"And where's the fun in that?" He laughed as he picked up the bottle from our table, "And besides, it looked like you got it under control."

"It would be easier if you didn't try to fuck with him." The head chef sighed, "Is it a habit of yours to screw with every major pirate in the East Blue?"

"Hey, I'm doing them a favour by throwing them down from their high horse." Sen stated, "And I'm stating facts after all. His punch just hurts like a bug sting."

"That guy stood up…" Usopp muttered in shock, "After taking Don Krieg's punch…"

"Of course, Sen took punches way harder than that." I tells him, I sitting at the table they're at, "Oh, and I'm Rein. Nice to meet you."

"O-Oh, nice to meet you too."

"Hey guys, what you think of him? Pretty good, right?" Luffy asked.

"W-Who cares?!" Usopp suddenly shouted, his body shaking in terror, "If we don't get out of here…!"

"Calm down." Zoro tells him, "Remember, our enemies are _wounded_ pirates."

"They say wounded dogs bite harder, you know." I pointed out to him.

"Oh shut up, you." He huffed, "And why are you here anyway? Shouldn't you be with your lover or something?"

"Okay, ONE! Sen is not my lover, he's my _mentor_!" I tells him, "And TWO! I sit wherever I want."

"Tch, whatever, lady."

"I have to fight with that guy." Luffy stated, "If he truly is strong, then he and I are going to butt heads anyways!"

"Oh yeah, kid." Sen walked up to us, a curious look in his eyes, "I've heard what you said just now. King of the Pirates, huh?"

"That's right! It's my dream!" The straw hat pirate stated firmly.

"That's a rather big dream for someone of your stature." He stated, "But the Grand Line isn't some place for rookies to show their worth. If you're not careful, you could die just at the entrance-"

"Oh yeah, Gin! You said you didn't know about the Grand Line." Luffy asked, "But didn't you guys go there?"

"…He's completely ignoring me…"

"Sorry for my captain…" Zoro sighed, "He's a little… lacking upstairs."

"Lacking is just saying it nicely…" I muttered.

"It's the truth… I don't know anything about it. I just… can't believe it…" Gin stated, his body shaking in fright, "I don't know if those seven days were a dream or a nightmare… I'm still wrestling with it in my head. That man… he just appeared all of the sudden."

"To think that the mighty Don Krieg pirate fleet… was completely destroyed by just _one_ man!"

"WHAT?!"

"I-IMPOSSIBLE! The ENTIRE Krieg pirate fleet was crushed by ONE man?!"

"We have no idea what was going on…" Gin continued, "One by one, our ships just sank. If weren't for that weird storm, even our main ship would have sunk… I don't know how many of our ships survived… it's just terrifying to think it was true… I don't want to even think about it…"

"About that hawk-eyed man!"

"WHAT?!" Zoro got up from his seat in shock.

"Hawk-eyed man, huh…?" Sen muttered, "That would explain the markings on the ship."

"H-Hawk-eyed…?" Usopp muttered, "Who's that?"

"Beats me." Luffy shrugged.

"He's the man I'm searching for." Zoro explained, "According to what Johnny said, he was spotted around the area just a few days ago."

"I think your friend got it mixed up." Sen tells him, "That man won't wander into any of the blues. Even if he did, I would have noticed."

"What, you're his friend or something?"

"Nah, just an acquaintance."

"Did he bear some kind of ill grudge against you guys, enough to destroy your fleet like that?" Sanji asked.

"I don't remember doing anything like that!" Gin cried, "He just attacked us out of the blue!"

"Perhaps you disturbed his afternoon nap or something." Zeff pointed out.

"That's bullshit! You mean to say that he destroyed our entire fleet because of that?!"

"No need to get so irritated." He tells the pirate, "It was just an example, that's the kind of place the Grand Line is."

"A place where the abnormal is the norm, huh?" Zoro stated.

"Shishishi! That sounds like fun!" Luffy stated excitedly, "We definitely need to go there!"

"H-Hey! Could you at least think of the danger as well?!" Usopp cried.

"But with this, it looks like my goal is tied to the Grand Line as well." The three-sword-style user smirked, "Considering that 'That man' is there as well."

"Oh? So you're aiming for him?" Sen asked, "Pray tell, what is it that you wish to accomplish by doing so?"

"To be the World Greatest Swordsman."

"…Ho… that would make it to only possible route…" He stated with a smirk, "But with as you are now… It would be around five, no… ten…? Twenty years before you can even try to compete with him."

"No matter. As long as I make it, I don't care how long it would take."

"…What a bunch of idiots. You lots are the type to rush to their deaths." Sanji stated harshly, before smiling happily at me, "Except for you of course, Rein-chwan~!"

…Dude, just stop.

"True, but I'd rather you left out the 'idiot' part." Zoro tells him, "Ever since I've decided to become the World's Greatest Swordsman, I threw away my attachment to life. The only one who has the right to call me an idiot is me."

"Ooh! Me too! Me too!" Luffy stated cheerfully.

"As a great man myself too! I am not afraid to die!" Usopp stated proudly.

"Liar."

"Psh, what a load of crap…" Sanji huffed.

"Hey, assholes! Haven't you realized the situation here?!" Patty shouted at us, "The gigantic galleon outside belongs to the Pirate Admiral Don Krieg! It's the ship of the strongest pirate of the East Blue!"

"I've face some of them once." Sen stated with a laugh, "They aren't that tough."

"And don't you call a lady an asshole, you shit-head!" Sanji shouted, kicking Patty in the head.

There was then a loud cheer from outside, followed by hundreds of footsteps echoing coming closer. "I can hear them coming!" One of the chef took ready, "Brace yourselves! This is ship is our restaurant! We won't let them have it!"

And within that same moment, the large galleon was sliced through almost instantly. I couldn't even believe my own eyes. On the pages, that one panel is proof of Mihawk's prowess and his worth of the title World Greatest. But to actually see it, it's completely unreal. Even the cuts on the ship are smooth!

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Krieg shouted.

"Don Krieg! O-Our ship! Our ship have been cut!"

"Cut?! What are you talking about?!" He cried, "How can such a huge galleon be cut?! That's impossible!"

"Crap! Our ship is still outside with Nami, Yosaku and Johnny on board!" Zoro cried.

"It might be too late already!" Usopp cried as the three of them rushed out of the restaurant in terror.

"Wait, our boat as well!" Sen cried as he ran out, me following as well. My stuff is still on it!

"Raise the anchor!" Zeff commanded, "Our ship is going to get dragged under!"

We ran out to the balcony, trying to find our boat. And we did found it. Only…

It was sliced right in two, barely floating above the water. At least our stuff wasn't cut down at all, I guess?

"MY BOAT!" Sen cried. I quickly get aboard one of the two halves, getting the two rucksacks before tossing them at him. Just as I came back aboard, I notice the boat on the waters.

A coffin-shaped boat, with candles on its sides alight with green flames. A lone man sat on it with legs crossed over the other, his calm demeanour speaks volume of his strength. There he is.

Dracule Mihawk.

…

* * *

 _To be continued…_

 **And done! Finally into the plot! It's a long chapter, huh? It wasn't supposed to be this long, but I kept on writing without noticing it.**

 **Either way, yes, right smack in the Baratie arc. Hopefully, I manages to portray Sanji good enough to be not Out of Character… Now then…**

 **How do get Rein into the crew…?**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	6. Ch 6:World Greatest Swordsmen? Wait, MEN

**Chapter 6: World Greatest Swordsmen? Wait, MEN?!**

* * *

Dracule Mihawk has one of the coolest designs in the whole One Piece universe. I'm not sure what is it, but the way the coat, the hat and even the shoes all seems to scream badass. When he first appeared on the screen, he became one of my favourite character design ever, next to Erza Scarlet and maybe Todoroki. Nothing can beat fucking GARcher Emiya though. He is the definite number one!

But I'm getting off topic here. The point is, Mihawk is cool. He is _the_ definition of the best in this world. If Whitebeard stands for sheer might, Mihawk stands for sheer skill.

And I can see it from him, it _radiates_ off him.

I can't stop looking at him. Man, Oda is amazing for creating such a character, but he failed to completely capture the sheer terror of his eyes. Those eyes, it looks so unnatural yet natural at the same time. It's not hard to see how terrifying he can be just by standing and glaring.

"Don Krieg, it's him! The one who destroyed our fleet!"

"He followed us all the way out here! He's come to kill all of us!"

"That bastard…!" Don Krieg muttered in shock.

"I-It can't be… is that…?" Zoro stutters, he _stuttered_! "…the 'hawk-eyed man'…?"

"He's… the one who sank a fleet of fifty ships?" Patty asked confused.

"Then… he's the one who destroyed Krieg's ship just now…" Carne added.

"He looks like any normal guy…" One of the chefs commented, "And he doesn't seems to be carrying any unique weapons on him…"

"If it's the weapon, it's on his back." Zeff tells them.

"Wait, what?! You mean he cut down that gigantic galleon with just a sword?!"

"Yes, that hawk-eyed man is a renowned swordsman." He explained, "More renowned than any other swordsmen in the entire world."

"Damn it! What did we ever do to you?!" One of the pirates shouted at him, "Why the hell do you have to follow us all the way out here?!"

"…Just to kill some time."

Man, the fact that he says that so nonchalantly is scary.

"That's bullshit!" The pirate pointed and fired his pistols at him, the bullet calmly passed by him when he used his sword. I didn't even see him draw it! Damn, it's just scary. The fact that he did that _and_ the fact that it could be physically possible for someone to actually do it.

And Zoro wants to become like him?!

"Wha- it missed him?!"

"He deflected it." Zoro stated standing behind the group of pirates. When did he get there, I didn't see him move! "It'll be the same no matter how many times you shoot. He changes the bullet's trajectory with just the tip of his blade. I've never seen such graceful movements."

"A sword without grace is not a strong sword." Mihawk explained.

"Did you cut this ship with that sword as well?"

"Yes, I did."

"No wonder… you really are the strongest!" Zoro said, "I've set sail to meet you!"

"Oh? And what're your aim?"

He undid his bandana around his arm and tied it around his head, "To be the Strongest!" He drew out his sword, "You said you want to kill some time, yes? So let's have a duel."

"That idiot! Didn't I say it is too early?!" Sen grumbled, "Even if you wish to reach the top, there's no need to rush in like that!"

"I doubt he would listen to reason…" I muttered. His goal is right in front of him. His greatest and possibly only chance to fulfil his dream. He wouldn't let it slip by.

"Pitiful…" Mihawk scoffed, "If you're a competent swordsman by any means, then I can demonstrate the clear difference in strength between you and I without the need to cross blades. But still, you dare to challenge me. Does your bravery come from your conviction… or your ignorance?"

"It comes from my ambition." Zoro stated, putting the Wado Ichimonji in his mouth as he draw out his other two swords, "And a promise to a friend." He took his stance, swords poise to strike, "But to be honest, I never thought I'd be able to meet you so soon."

"A waste, if you ask me." Mihawk sighed, sheathing his Yoru and taking his pendant off of his neck. He then pulls out a small knife from it.

"Just what are you planning on doing with _that_?"

"I'm different from all those brutes that go all out just to hunt a mere rabbit." He explained, "Though you may be a renowned swordsman, this is the East Blue, the weakest of the four seas separated via the Red Line and Grand Line. Unfortunately, I do not have any blade smaller than this at the moment."

Wow, that just sounds really cocky. If I didn't know his real strength, I would have call him out as a bluff.

"There's a limit to how much you can underestimate me!" Zoro growled, charging forwards with his swords, "You better not regret it when you die!"

"Hear me little frog, it's time you realise that the world is larger than it seems from your well."

"Three-sword style: Demon Cutter!"

Zoro slashes forward, but all his swords are stopped right at its tracks by a well-timed stab. To see such defiance of physics, I guess if you have the will, you can break the laws of physics like it was nothing.

The pirate hunter roars out (Now that I've seen it, his sword never left his mouth the entire time he talked) before clashing once more, all his strikes all parried away by Mihawk's knife. He even manages to push him on to his back one time.

The strikes became more desperate with each following strike. Less focus and more wild. Zoro is losing, I can see it, but to see it so one-sided…

"What burdens you so…?" Mihawk asked, "What do you still desire at the extent of your strength, weaking?"

He pushes him back once more, Zoro getting back and getting into another stance, "Tiger Trap!" He rushed forward, but before his swords could even connect, Mihawk entered and stabbed him in the chest.

"B-BRO!-!"

At first, I thought he was going to fall backwards, but the pirate hunter stood his ground, not moving an inch.

"Do you wish for me to pierce your heart?" Mihawk questioned, "Why do you refuse to step back?"

"Beats me…" Zoro panted out, "Not really sure myself… but I get the feeling… that if I take even _one_ step back right now, I'll lose something very important to me… an oath, a promise or whatever it is, it would be irreversibly broken. And I'd never be able to return back to where I'm standing right now…"

"Yes, such is defeat."

"Haha, I see… then that's why I can't step back."

"Even if it means your death?"

"I'd much rather die."

Mihawk's eyes widen for just a moment, before pulling out his knife and sheathing it, "Kid, tell me your name."

"Roronoa Zoro." The pirate hunter positions his swords forward, as such his blades formed a somewhat of a tripod.

"I shall remember it, for you strength is not often seen in this world." The greatest swordsman then proceeds to pull out his sword, I can feel the atmosphere completely change. It's the end, the last bout. "And to pay my respects to such strength, from one swordsman to another, I shall end this duel with my Black Sword, the world's strongest sword."

Zoro take his stance, just as Mihawk rushed forward with his sword ready to strike, and his spun his swords, "Three-Sword Style, Secret Art: Three Thousand Worlds!" He then dashed forward to meet the attack.

The exchange was instantaneous. In a second, Zoro's swords broke, cuts appeared all over his chest. It was over.

"To think that he made Mihawk go serious for even a moment…" Sen muttered with a smirk.

Zoro sheathes the Wado Ichimonji, before facing Mihawk with his arms to the stretched out.

"What is this?"

"A wound on one's back is the shame of a swordsman."

"…Splendid!"

And with that, Mihawk slashes down on his chest. Blood sprayed all over, his body slowly falling backwards, and I then remembered what was going to happen. I immediately took off my shirt and jumped into the waters, ignoring Sen's cries as I dived.

I ignored the coldness and tries to find him. With luck, I saw a small inkling of a bloody cloud not far from here. I swam as fast as I could, barely managing to grab onto his arm before began my ascent. Johnny and Yosaku just dived in just as I'm about to break surface, they awkwardly swam aside allowing me to do just that, I inhaling as much as air as I could when I did.

I can feel his wounds, and the amount of blood leaking from him isn't healthy at all! How did this _not_ paralysed him at all?!

"Quick, get him on the boat!" Usopp urged me, I swam up to the boat with Zoro in tow. With Yosaku and Johnny's help, we manages to get him on board just as the sniper took out a first aid kit, "Quick, apply the medicine to his wounds!"

"I am Dracule Mihawk!" Mihawk calls out, "It's much too early for you to die. Know thy self! Know thy world! And become Strong, Roronoa Zoro! No matter how many months or years passed, I shall stand here, at the top of the world and wait for you! So forge on ahead with that fierce conviction and try to surpass my sword!"

"Surpass me! Roronoa!"

I would have fanboy/girl so hard right then, if weren't for the near-dead Zoro on the floor in front of me. I manages to pick up stitching up wounds from Sen, but this is the first time I did it to someone else. With a steadiest hand I can muster, I slowly starts stitch up the large gaping wound on his chest.

"Usopp! Is Zoro alright?!" Luffy asked.

"Like hell he is!" Usopp cried, "But he'll live! Rein here is stitching up his wounds now!"

"Bro…!"

"Bro, please answer us!"

"Would the both of you shut the fuck up?!" I screamed at them. Damn, it's hard enough to do this on the swaying boat, but their crying is making it hard to concentrate!

And then, Zoro suddenly lift up Wado Ichimonji (When did he unsheathe the damn thing?!), and starts coughing out blood, "L-Luffy… can you hear me…?"

"Yeah!"

"Sorry for worrying you… I know… that if I don't become… the world's greatest Swordsman, it will only embarrass you…!" He coughed out some more blood as I try to get him to stay still, "I swear! I swear that I'm never going to lose again! Until the day I fight him and win… I swear! I won't lose again! Any problems with that, King of the Pirates?!"

"Shishishi, nope!" Luffy laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, it's beautiful and all that, but stop moving!" I cried, "It's hard enough to stitch you up as it is!"

"Hawk-eyes!" Krieg called him out, "Did you come all the way out here for my head? The head of the infamous ruler of the East Blue, Don Krieg?!"

"For while there, yes." Mihawk stated "But I've enjoyed myself plenty now, so I'll like to return to my nap."

"Wait, wait, wait right there!" Sen shouted, I looked a bit to notice him walking up to the swordsman with an angry scowl, "Before you even think of leaving, at least pay for my boat that YOU wrecked!"

"Hey, what's your mentor doing?!" Usopp asked, "He's going to get himself killed!"

"I… don't know. But I doubt he would kill him that easily." I tells him.

"…" Mihawk turned around and with one swift stroke, he drew Yoru and swings it down at Sen. He sighed a little before blocking the strike with his sword still sheathed, the shockwave of the clash rocking the waters slightly.

"Is that your answer to everything?!" He cried, "It's just a thousand belis!"

"…I'll pay you later."

"That's what you said the last time!" He pushes the sword back before wielding his sword by the sheath.

"…If you win."

"Just admit you don't have money on you!"

Without another word, the two starts clashing with each other, and I'm completely caught off-guard. I knew that Sen is good, but not good enough to take on Mihawk one-on-one! No wait, I think he's barely putting any effort at all!

"Whoa, your mentor is taking on Mihawk like it is nothing…!" Usopp commented.

"Hey! Quit ignoring me!" Krieg shouted as he unloads all of his rounds at them, the two of them took notice and leaped off. The bullets all took hit on the planks harmlessly just as Mihawk boards his boat.

"Next time, Sen." He stated as he slashes the water hard, creating a misty cover while shaking the waters again. I actually lose balanced and landed face first into Zoro's bare chest.

"Usopp! Go on ahead!" Luffy tells him.

"Alright!" The sniper calls back holding the signature straw hat, "Zoro and I'll definitely get Nami back! So you make sure to get us a cook! Once we have all five members, let's head to the Grand Line!" He tossed the hat right at him.

"Yeah! Let's!" Luffy shouted back, catching the hat.

"Rein, here's your belongings!" Sen called out, as a rucksack is tossed towards me as I barely catches it. "You go on ahead! I'll catch up!"

"Okay! You take care too!"

Soon enough, the Baratie disappeared over the horizon. I manages to stitch up most of the wounds, Johnny and Yosaku now sterilizing and bandaging up the green-haired swordsman. But now that that is done, that left me with Usopp looking at me curiously.

"Um… sorry for intruding, I supposed?"

"Okay, where in the East Blue did you came from?!" He cried, "First you punched Don fucking Krieg in the face, then your mentor goes toe-to-toe with the WORLD's greatest Swordsman, seriously?! Are you guys all monsters? Are you a monster?!"

"Well, Sen is technically a monster…" He _is_ a dragon, after all…

"Either way, who are you guys?" He asked.

"Oh, I'm Rein. Me and Sen are just wanderers." I tells him, "We travelled aimlessly across the seas, mostly just sightseeing and all that."

"Wanderers…?" Usopp muttered with confusion, "In this era?"

"We mostly avoided pirates as much as we could."

"B-But still, why did you save Zoro? You barely know him!" He stated.

"No, but I want to see him succeed."

"Eh?"

Now how do I play this…? Might as well starts with the truth, "He and Luffy inspired me, their declarations and conviction actually moved me. It makes me want to see him accomplish his dreams. He and Luffy both…"

"Wow…" He muttered before taking on a bravado, "Well! They can't do anything without my help! For I am Captain Usopp for a thousand men!"

"You're lying."

"Ah! You found out?!"

"See?"

"Ah damn it! Caught again!"

I laughed slightly, if this is what it's like being on board the Straw Hats, I don't mind. As long as Sanji keeps his distance.

"Sis! We can't thank you enough!" Johnny said happily.

"Yeah! Thank you sis! We owe you big time!" Yosaku added in.

"Um… no problem, I guess?" Sis? When was I 'sis' to them…?

"Allow us to introduce ourselves!" They stated, standing back up into their poses, "We are Yosaku and Johnny! The bounty hunters whose names can just barely stopped babies crying! Pleased to make your acquaintance, Big Sis Rein!"

"Um… please to make your acquaintance too…" This is going to be so awkward… "So, where are we heading?"

* * *

After a couple of days of sailing, with an incident where Yosaku is attacked by a pandashark (I'm still surprised with how that happened. It's so out of nowhere!), we made it our destination.

Arlong Park.

Oda once again shows his artist prowess in this, the architecture of the place looked equally intimidating and goofy at the same time. With the pagoda-like building in the middle with the shark heads on the roof. Not to mention the stone walls surrounding the place with the name 'Arlong Park' written boldly for all to see.

"We've arrived but…" Johnny muttered.

"The real problem is from here." Usopp stated, "First, let's try to find where Nami docked the ship…"

"And then cut our way in?" Guess who said that?

"As if!" Johnny yelled.

"Are you an idiot?! We don't have the slightest clue of what's going on yet!" Usopp chimed in.

"Ah! Wait, before you bring out the ropes…" I tells them, the two of them already starting to tie Zoro to the mast, "… you know what, do as you will."

"Traitor!" Zoro screamed as the two cowards tied him firmly.

When they are doing that, I take first duty to take watch with the binoculars. After a few minutes of background screaming, I saw the familiar goat ship, "Hey, I think I found your ship."

"Really?" Usopp takes the watch glass from me, "…You're right, it's the Going Merry!"

"Hey! What's the meaning of this?! Untie me this instant!"

"Hmm… from what I can tell…" Johnny checked the map, "That's a strange place to dock a ship. It's a little off from a village called Cocoyashi."

"Oi! I said untie me!"

"Now, now, Zoro, enough already." Usopp tells his crewmate, "Look at yourself. You're about to faint just from talking!" He panted the bandaged part to prove his point, "You're just an inch away from death, remember? Just leave the rest to me! I'll bring back Nami no sweat!"

"You're oddly chipper, now that we're not going into Arlong Park…" Johnny stated.

"Starboard to Going Merry! Bring me up right next to her!"

"Aye aye…"

"Alright! The adventure about to unfold as I bravely step on these virgin lands will hereby be known as 'The Warrior Usopp's Great Adventure'! Fitting title, eh, Johnny?"

"Aye aye…"

Aren't he full of dramatics? But seriously, this is bad. I have no idea what I should do here. I could abandon Zoro along with Usopp and Johnny, and I might be able to meet Nojiko and handle the plot from there. But I would be abandoning Zoro.

I could get captured along with Zoro and then escape together with them, but then I won't know how Arlong is going to react to my presence. I've haven't meet Nami herself yet so the friend card is out. Maybe I can find a way to trick him…?

"The hell are you just passing by for?!" Zoro screamed, getting shushed by Johnny and Usopp.

Huh? I missed the fishmen? That's a shame, I kind of want to see what they looked like in real-life.

"Didn't you see them?! There were fishmen! The Arlong Pirates for crying out loud!" Usopp whispered-shouted, "I'm freaking scared out of my wits! You got a problem with that?!"

"The one who should be mad is me…" Zoro stated, "And Rein! Untie me already!"

"Nope, not risking it." Seriously, how is he still conscious?! He have lost way too much blood to be healthy!

"It's no good… this entire region seems to be under Arlong's control." Johnny stated, "What should we do, Brother Usopp?"

"Well, now that we know we can't bring Nami back…"

"Just hurry up and untie me you idiots!"

I then took notice of the unnatural splashing in the water, the fishmen seems to be swimming towards us. "Um, is that bad?"

"GAH! Abandon ship!" Usopp screamed as he and Johnny leaped into the water swimming away at top speed.

"Hey! You assholes, come back here!" Zoro screamed, "At least untie me first!"

…Staying with Zoro it is then.

"Heh heh, finally caught up to ya." One of the fishmen came aboard. If I were to describe what a fishmen looked like, it would be… uncanny. They looked human enough, but their skin looked more like scales and with the completely different jaw shape and the gills on their collar bones.

"Huh? It's just a couple."

Wait, what?!

"WE ARE NOT A COUPLE!" Zoro and I shouted.

"Could have fool us!" The fishman laughed, "Let me guess, your parents don't want you guys dating so you ran away from your boyfriend?"

"Fuck no!" I screamed. I liked Zoro, sure, but not like that! I'm still mentally a guy!

"Oh, a mouth on this one." He smirked, "Let's take them both to Arlong."

"Agreed."

…This better be worth it…

* * *

No, it's not.

"I told you already, I came here looking for a single woman!" Zoro stated angrily, "You half-fish mutant!"

"Oh? An inferior human dares to slight me…?" Arlong laughed, "I'll forgive you just this once, but don't you ever call us half-fish again!"

After being captured, me and Zoro are brought to Arlong Park to meet with the big man himself. They of course have to tie our arms to our back as prisoners and our weapons confiscated.

I just realized, I didn't even get a chance to use my sword against Don Krieg! Goddamn it!

"We fishmen are 'evolved humans' who gained the ability to breathe in the sea. With our abilities, we're beings of a higher order compared to you puny humans!"

Arlong is… peculiar to say the least. It have the same physic as the other fishmen, but you can tell the shark genes from him. His large sharp teeth to unusual jawbones, he more of an alien than fish, to be honest.

I tuned out most of his higher-than-thou speech and starts to strategize on how to escape. I doubt I can fight my way out, I'm not skilled enough to take on an army of fishmen. Maybe I can fool Arlong to letting me go? Or make use of Nami in some way?

"I'm sick of hearing you blab on about that pet theory of yours, Arlong."

A female voice caught my attention, I looked up to see Nami herself. Her cold look almost fool me into thinking her as a bitch she shows herself to be. But I got to admit, she looks rather beautiful for being only in her teens. No wonder that are a lot of porn of her.

"No need to make such a scary face, Nami!" Arlong laughed, "You're a different case of course! You're the Arlong Pirates' prized Cartographer! You make the most accurate nautical charts!"

"Of course! My brain is of a much _higher order_ than any of yours!" She stated.

"Cartographer…? Oi, Nami!" Zoro cried, "Why the hell are you so chummy with these guys for?!"

"What? Are you three acquaintances?" Arlong asked.

"Don't be silly, he's just one of my victims." Nami stated, "I was able to swindle a huge fortune from these guys during my most recent haul. The girl though… I've never met before."

"Is that so?" Arlong chuckled, "She is quite a beauty, though. You hardly see human woman this fine. Mind if we keep her?"

"I'm no one's property!" I shouted at him, "Especially not to a racist fuck-face like you!"

"Hey, hey, this one's got quite a mouth!" He laughed. The others all starts laughing as well, "And Nami, girl! You completely got have him completely had! Shahahaha! This girl here would do anything for cold hard cash! Even forgetting the death of her own parent, and even her family! She's a cold-hearted witch!"

A slight crack in her mask is more than enough for me. Damn that Arlong, to think that he is stringing her along for all those years…!

"I see…" Zoro muttered, "Well, it's not like I really trusted her anyways. Wouldn't surprise me if she turned out to be a devilish cutthroat. Right from the beginning, I had a feeling you were a good-for-nothing woman."

"Hmph… well that makes things easier." Nami scoffed, "If you realised that I was only tricking you, then can you just give up on your treasure and my navigation skills and disappear already? You're an eyesore."

I took notice the look in his eyes, and then he leaped backwards into the water. I looked in shock, before remembering the same thing happening in the manga. It was his test for her, to see if she is truly the heartless bitch she shows herself to be.

And I know she isn't, as apparent as her face right now.

"So, you're going to let him drown?" I asked her.

"Come on, Nami. Just leave him." Arlong stated.

Without a second to lose, she kicks off her shoes and dived into the water. That leaves me alone with the fishmen, and I can see some looking at me lustfully. "Hey, Arlong, can we keep her?" One of the fishmen asked, "I mean, it's not like she's part of any of the villages here."

"Hm… I don't know." He muttered, "I would be nice to have someone to service us though."

Oh fuck that guy! I'm not touching him even if we're the last two people on the planet!

At that moment, before Arlong can make any decision, Nami and Zoro surfaces, the ginger-haired girl pulling him ashore with her. After a few exchanges, she punches him in the gut, completely disabling him.

"Hey Nami, what're you going to do with him?" Arlong asked.

"Lock him up for now!" Nami shouted, "Same with the girl! I'll deal with them later."

"Sure, whatever." He sighed.

"Arlong!" One of the fishmen that captured us ran in.

"What is it, my brother?"

"There was another long-nose human that got away!" He stated, "I think he's probably hiding in Cocoyashi Village somewhere…"

Oh right, Usopp! Crap, with any luck, he would do the same stupid shit he pulled in the manga. Not good…

"Cocoyashi…? It just so happened that I had some business to attend there." Arlong smirked, "Hey, you guys! Toss them into the prison. I'll handle them later."

"Yes, boss!"

* * *

A few stairs down later, they left me in a cell. The place isn't as dirty as I thought. A little dusty, but quite clean. I looked out into the corridors, noticing the lack of guards. They must be really confident that people can't get out of here, or that they almost never used the cells at all.

Either way, it's to my advantage. I wiggled my wrists a little, the knot slowly coming loose. These people need to work on their knot-tying, and maybe try new knots for female prisoners. Okay, almost free! Just a little more-

"Come on, man. Let's not do this."

"Relax. It's not like Arlong tells us not to do anything to the prisoners. We're just… interrogating her. That's all."

Oh hell no! If he means what I think he means… I quicken my pace, and just barely managed to slip out of the ropes. Yes! Now all I have to-

The cell's doors opened, "Oh beautiful-" I rushed at him before he could finish, aiming my fist at his face. But just a few moments, he grabbed my fist and twist my arm, locking my elbow to my back.

"Now, now… let's not do anything hasty, cutie." He smirked, "Wouldn't want that cute face to be bruised now."

"Let me go, you perverted fishes!"

"Now, that's just rude!" He stated as he turned my around and pushed me to the ground, I facing him as he mount me, "Allow me to educate you some manners."

Before he could do anything else though, a white sheathe is hit on his head knocking him out. The other one turned to see who it is and was knocked out as well. I looked up to see a mob of moss-green hair.

"Z-Zoro…?"

"You okay?" Zoro asked me.

"Y-Yeah…" I muttered as he pulled me up.

He looked over at the two fishmen knocked out, "Damn, these guys… why didn't you fight back?" He asked, "I mean, you sucker-punched Don fucking Krieg in the face."

"Hey! He's just a guy in armour!" I shouted back, "Those two aren't humans! Well, half-humans…"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Zoro sighed, "Anyway, I'm heading up top to deal with those freaks. I suggest you wait before head up."

"Oh, sure." I gave him a thumbs-up, "You do that."

Zoro gave me a scoff before running off down the corridor. That gave me some time to ponder on what just happened.

How could I let that happen to me?!

I trained with Sen so I wouldn't be a liability!

And yet, here I am! Being rescued like some damsel in distress!

I clenched my fists hard. No more. Not anymore! Next time, I'm going to show him!

Show him that I'm worthy of being under the same flag!

With that thought, I ran forward after Zoro.

…

 _To be continued…_

 **There finish! And yeah, that is a rape scene… Sorry if that's out of the blue, but I did mention this one have some mature themes. Hopefully, I wrote that scene okay. Not so graphic, I hope…**

 **So yeah, jump forward towards to the Arlong arc. I have that all worked out. So just wait and see.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**

 ***Edit*: Okay, some people really, REALLY, don't like the rape scene, and to be honest, neither do I. It's just my tired-self making shit up as I go along… So, I removed it all together and rewrote some of the dialogue. Sorry if I offended some of you.**


	7. Ch 7:Time for an Extermination!

**Chapter 7: Time for an Extermination!**

I never thought I say this ever in my entire life, but I really don't like Zoro right now.

Oh no, I don't hate him, just he is hard to deal with.

His lack of directions has always been the running joke in the entire One Piece fandom, and still is to me.

But to actually handle it first hand, I can see most of the crew's frustrations with him now. It is utterly IMPOSSIBLE for him to get anywhere without some sort of a guide. And having a guide for him is useless anyway since he is so goddamn stubborn to listen to me!

"That way! The exit is that way!"

"Shut up! Stop telling me what to do!"

"I say what I want to say and- WHY ARE YOU GOING UP?! The exit at the first floor!"

"It's not my fault this place is a maze!"

"There's only one set of stairs!"

As you can tell by the dialogue… yeah, it took quite a while.

After escaping our cells, I manages to catch up to Zoro who was walking back from the corridor he just left. After a little arguing with him, we went on our merry way until we reached the first set of stairs and he has the funny idea to keep going up to the upper floors for whatever reason.

Luckily, we somehow manages to get to the exit, while grabbing a shirt for Zoro and my sword along the way. After that, it was chaos.

Zoro wasn't one of the best swordsmen in the history of anime, period, for nothing. Even with just his Wado Ichimonji, he completely obliterated the fishmen. There wasn't much of a struggle at all. Within a manner of minutes, the entire Arlong Pirates' crew sans the one with the captain is down and out.

"Jeez… what a mess I ended up into…" Zoro sighed.

"At least you got your sword back." I stated, shrugging my shoulders, "But now… how do we get out of here…?"

A loud trumpet noise could then be heard coming from the walls. Wait… trumpet…? Oh yeah, Hachi! That goofy octopus is feeding Momoo right now! Didn't Zoro somehow tricked him into giving him a lift?

"What's that trumpet noise just now?" Zoro asked.

"One of the crew by the water gate?" I stated. He looked at me confused, before we ran to the walls to take a look. Once over the wall, we are met by the star-haired octopus fishmen.

Okay, I take it back. Arlong isn't an alien. Fucking Hachi is!

I mean, look at him! His mouth and jaws all bulged out like a trumpet, his six arms which have HUGE suckers on them, even his skin colour of off-putting. At least Arlong and those like him, the scales give the alien colour a more natural look.

But with Hachi… have octopus before? Noticing the rubbery skin texture from first glance? Yeah, that's his skin.

"Was it you who blew that trumpet just now?" Zoro asked.

"Nyu! W-Who are you guys?!" Hachi asked in shock, "Who, me? I'm Hacchan! You can call me Hachi!"

…isn't Hacchan the nickname?

"Are you fishman too?"

"Yup, yup! I'm an octopus fishman!" The fishman tells us, "Hey… I feel like I've seen you two before…are you with the Marines? Or are you guests?"

"Guests-?"

"Guests! Yes!" I quickly stated, ignoring the slight glare Zoro is giving me, "We were invited by Arlong but when we came here, Arlong isn't around."

"Oh, I guess you just missed him." Hachi tells me. Oh my god he is so earnest! I feel so bad lying to him! "You see, there's this long-nose intruder that got away from us. We've got two of his companions tied up here, but Arlong went to Cocoyashi Village to capture him."

"How can I get to that village?" Zoro asked.

"Oh, leave that to me." The octopus pirate tells us, pointing to a large floating pot which I didn't notice at all, "I'll give you guys a lift!"

Without much doubt, after both I and Zoro entered the pot, Hachi proceeds to swim away from Arlong Park before reaching a small dock where we alighted. After pointing out where Arlong might be, he swam back towards Arlong Park.

"So… that saw-nose is in this town too, huh…?" Zoro wonders, "Well, whatever, I'll look for our long-nose first. And you, girl, better get away from here. Go hide somewhere until this all blows over." He then proceeds to walk off.

"Fuck that! I'm not hiding!" I shouted at him, chasing up to him. Jeez, guys and their chivalrous code!

"Wha-?!"

Well, I am one too, so that does not applied to me! "I may not know him for very long, but we sailed here together. I'm helping you find Usopp!"

"Oh jeez…" Zoro groaned, "Alright fine, but don't stray too far from me. I won't be able to protect if you did that."

"You mean, you'll get lost."

"Gah! N-NO!"

"Yeah, yeah. I can protect myself, moss-head."

I can hear the veins in his head popping when I said that. Let's not provoke him too much now… After walking for a few minutes, we finally came across a random villager walking around. "Hey, you." Zoro called out, before I dope-slap him in the head, "Ow! What was that for?!"

"At least show some manners, geez." I sighed as I walked up to the villager, "Excuse me, sir. We're looking for our friend, have you seen him? His name is Usopp and he has a pretty long nose…"

"Oh him? Sorry to tell you, but he was taken to Arlong Park."

"What?! Usopp was taken to Arlong Park?!" Zoro cried.

"Yeah, I saw him get taken in just a few minutes ago…"

"Oh, son of a–!" He cursed out as he took to running down the street. I quickly gave chase, thanking the villager for the information.

As soon as we hit the edge of the village, the both of us start sprinting down the beaten road. Thankfully, there's only one road towards Arlong Park so there's little chance for Zoro to get lost. Which I'm proven wrong when he suddenly started running into the forest.

"Zoro! Arlong Park is that way!" I screamed.

"What? Got damn it, this road is confusing!"

"There's only one path, you dingus!"

After a few minutes of running, we then heard a loud noise.

Wait… loud noise… from the forest…?

"The hell was that?!" Zoro muttered, "Did someone drop a bomb or something?" He shakes his head, "Regardless, we have to hurry or else Usopp will get ki-"

Oh yeah! Now I remember! This is the part where-

And just like that, a boat bursts out of the woods with four familiar people riding on it. "Ah! Zoro! Rein!"

"Hey, Rein."

"Luffy?!"

"Sen?!"

This is gonna hurt!

* * *

I've blacked out for a few seconds before getting up from the wreckage. I don't know how, but I manages to survive that. Damn Sen and his crazy training, it may be hell, but the results are definitely worth it.

"Hahaha! That was one hell of a ride!" Sen laughed.

"The hell do you think you're doing?!" Zoro screamed out at the rubber boy.

"What do you mean? We've obviously come to get Nami back." Luffy stated nonchalantly, "Have you found her yet? Where's Johnny and Usopp?"

"Are you alright, Rein-chwan?! Need me to heal you with my love~?"

Was not missing this though…

"I'm fine Sanji…" I grumbled as the cook hovers all around me with love-filled eyes.

"Usopp–Oh Crap! Usopp!" Zoro cried as he quickly starts to run off.

"Hm? What's wrong?" Luffy asked.

"That idiot went and got himself captured by Arlong!" He cried, "If we don't hurry, he'll be k–"

"He was already killed!" A voice shouted at us, we all turned to see Johnny standing there, "It's too late… Brother Usopp was murdered by Sister Nami!"

Everyone except from me and Sen just looked at him in shock, they all froze within the moment. And within that moment, Luffy dashed forward and grabbed Johnny by the collar with the angriest face I have ever seen on him. "Say it one more time, and I swear I'll kick your ass!"

"W-Whoa! Luffy, stop!" Zoro tries to hold back his captain, "It's not like Johnny's the one at fault here!"

"Well, he's making up bullcrap!" He shouted, "We're crewmates! There's no way that Nami would kill Usopp!"

"It's fine if you don't want to believe it…!"

"Look, Luffy, you have to calm down!" I tried to pulls him off of Johnny.

"Just who did you call crewmates, Luffy?"

Everyone turned to the owner of that voice, Nami standing down there looking like a cold bitch that she portrays to be. "What did you come to this island for?" She asked.

"What're you talking about? Aren't we crewmates?" Luffy asked, "We've come for you, of course!"

"Well, you're nothing but a nuisance." Nami scoffed, "And 'Crewmates'? Don't make me laugh. It was nothing but a stupid little cooperation."

"…!"

I looked closely at Nami, see any indication of her true self under that heartless exterior. If I can somehow prove she is lying… I need a crack, any kind…

"Nami-swan~! It's me! Do you remember me~?!" Sanji sang much to my annoyance, "Let's set sail together~!"

"Shut up!" Zoro shouted, "Can't you see you're making things more complicated butting in?!"

"What was that?!" The blonde cook scowled at him, "Don't you know? Love is always a Hurricane!"

"Sanji, please stop talking."

"Yes, Rein-chwan~!"

Okay, this might be useful. Somewhat…

"I told you so! She's a witch!" Johnny accused, "If it means she can get her hands on the treasure hidden in her village, she'll gladly join the Arlong Pirates and even kill! She's a cold-blooded witch through and through! You're all been deceived from the start! And I swear I saw her stabbing Usopp!"

Goddamn it, Johnny's accusation is making it worse!

"…So what?" Nami asked, "Would you like to try and avenge him?"

"What?!"

"Let me tell you one thing." She continued, "After the idiotic stunt Zoro pulled, Arlong wants Zoro and all his companions dead. No matter how monstrously strong you all may be… you're no match to a real monster."

"I couldn't care less about that." Zoro stated, "Where's Usopp?"

"At the bottom of the ocean."

I think I hear a line being snapped, "That's it! I've had enough of you!" The green-haired swordsman rushed forward ready to draw his sword.

"And _I_ had enough of _you_!"

Sanji then got in his way, swinging his leg right at Zoro's head, stopping his charge, "Does a swordsman harm ladies as well, Roronoa Zoro?"

"The hell did you say?" Zoro all but shouted, "Don't butt in when you don't know the first thing about anything!"

"Heh… aren't you quite irritable after your shameful loss." The blonde cook mocked.

"What was that?!" The swordsman growled, "Watch your mouth, or your head will be sent flying!"

"I'd like to see you try."

"Oi! The two of you, stop it!" I shouted at them.

"Sister Rein is right!" Yosaku stated, "This is no time to be arguing!"

"That's right! If you're going to fight, why don't you do it somewhere other than this island?" Nami stated, "I'd rather not have outsiders sticking their noses in this island's affairs anymore!"

"…Is Arlong that scary…?" Sen asked suddenly.

Everyone looked at him in complete shock, especially Yosaku, "What do you mean, THAT SCARY?!" He cried, "I've told you on the way here, did I? Arlong is-"

"Yeah, yeah. I know." He stated rubbing his finger in his ears, "Jinbei's comrade and all that, right? But I'm not asking you. I'm asking HER."

Nami looked at him in complete shock. "…What?"

"Arlong is a lot of things, scary is the absolute one." He stated, "But I'm asking if he scared you so much that you are trying to throw your crewmates off this island just to save them."

"W-What are you talking about!?" Nami all out screamed, "They are NOT my crewmates! I only stuck around them for the money! That's all there is between us!"

"Yet you're here, desperately trying to get them away from Arlong."

Nami froze, no words coming out of her mouth. Or at least, she's trying to speak but lack the words.

Sen sighed a little, "I'm not part of your crew, so I've no right to say this." He looked at Nami head on, "But you should trust in the people that you KNOW will not stab you in the back."

"…" She looked away, her mask cracking under the pressure, "But what else was I supposed to do…?"

"…Arlong is a monster…" She muttered, "A true monster… there's no way you can win…" She looked at us, tears flowing down her eyes, "Even if I trust you guys… I trust the fact that Arlong is invincible even more… So please… just… leave…"

Sen looked at her, before sighing deeply, "Arlong, that son of a bitch…"

Luffy stared a little, before plopping down on the dirt, "That's it. I'm going to sleep."

"SLEEP?!" Johnny and Yosaku cried, "In this emergency?! And the middle of the road?!"

"I don't feel like leaving, so I'm sleeping."

Nami stared at him in shock, before growling slightly as more tears flow down her eyes, "I was an idiot for thinking that you might listen… FINE! DO WHATEVER YOU WANT! I DON'T CARE ANYMORE!" She then took off down the road, away from us.

I looked at Nami's disappearing figure, a migraine coming along. I knew this arc was going to be a pain in the ass. Not difficult, just… annoying. But since Luffy has settled on sleeping, I might as well stay as well.

I take a place next to Zoro and lie down on the dirt, ignoring the impudent stares from Johnny and Yosaku.

"Are you guys all insane?!" Johnny cried, "Brother Usopp has been killed! That WITCH says so! Not only that, Arlong is after our blood!"

"What reasons are they left for you guys to stay?!" Yosaku asked, "I, for one, believe Johnny!"

"It's only been a short while, but I'm afraid this is where we part ways." His partner stated, "We have no desire to be hunted down by Arlong of all people."

"It's fine." Zoro stated as the two bounty hunters walked away, "Take care, you two."

"May we meet again someday!"

I waved at them a little before going back to cloud watching. I thought to the rest of the events that are going to transpire. After this, Usopp would probably come running and tell us the truth. Then Nojiko will show up to tell us Nami's backstory. Luffy would leave, and then…

My eyes widen in realization. The marines! Nezumi would be barging into Nami's estate to confiscate (Read as steal) her treasure trove! Crap, and I don't know where the estate is!

"Hey, Sen!" I called out getting up, only to find him gone. Huh? When did he disappear?

"If you're looking for him, he left the same time Yosaku and Johnny did." Zoro stated.

"WHAT?!" Gah! This is no time for his disappearing act!

"Oh~ Rein-chwan's angry face is so cute~!" Sanji cooed, prompting me to glare at him which in turn cause his love hurricane to speed up.

"Oh, shut up, you ero-cook." Zoro groaned.

"Huh?! What was that, you moss-head?" The blonde cook growled.

"I said shut up, you perverted chef!"

"Oh really? I'm afraid I could quite hear that, you marimo, wanna repeat that to my face?!"

"Would the both of you just shut up?!" I screamed at them. They looked at me, before sitting back down. I groaned tiredly, not liking being the mediator for these two.

"…Hey."

"…What?"

"You think Nami-san really killed long-nose?" Sanji asked.

"Who knows…?" Zoro stated, "Maybe after I called her 'Small-time', she got so pissed off that she killed him."

"Small… time…?" The blonde cook's eyebrow twitches violently.

Oh god, this argument. I'm not letting them have this with me in the middle. I got up and walked off just as the fight was about to start-

"Nami's breasts aren't small-time!"

"Is that all you think about?!"

"BUGOH!"

I paused, turning back to see Zoro's sheathe and Sanji's feet in Usopp's cheeks, the long-nose sniper looked like he has lost consciousness from the strikes.

"He's… alive…" Sanji stated.

"Not anymore… maybe…" Zoro added.

"You two morons!" I punched the both of them in head.

Geez, is this what Nami have to deal with after this? Not looking forward to that…

* * *

"Ah! USOPP!" Luffy cried as he hold his friend's semi-unconscious body, "Did Nami did this to you?!"

"Uh, no. That was actually because of him and me…" Sanji apologized.

"You mean just you." Zoro scoffed.

"Apologized too, you dingus." I stated angrily.

Usopp finally returned to the waking world, taking note of the people here, "Ah! Luffy! You're here too?"

"Yup!"

"I've decided to come along too. Please take care of me."

"I'll kill you one of these days!" Usopp shouted at the blonde cook, "At any case, the problem here is Nami. She saved my life… If you asked me, there must be a reason why she ended up joining the Arlong Pirates!"

"It's useless." A voice tells us, we turned to face the blue haired sister of Nami. Man, what is with Oda and drawing every named female character so beautiful? Nojiko has this mature look to her, the blue hair, tanned skin and small tattoo at her shoulders really sell her as a responsible yet rebellious woman.

And I think her bust is slightly bigger than Nami's…

"No matter what you do, you won't be able to change Arlong's rule." She tells us.

"Nojiko!"

"Who's she?" Luffy asked.

"She's Nami's sister." Usopp tells us.

"N-Nami-swan's sister?! No wonder she's so beautiful~!" Sanji cooed, I dope-slapped him in the head.

"Not the time!"

"What do you mean, useless?" Zoro asked.

"Please don't involve yourselves with this island any further." Nojiko tells us, "I'll tell you all about how things got this way, so in return, I want you to just leave quietly."

"I'm fine. I'm not really interested in her past." Luffy tells her.

"Eh?!"

"I'm taking a walk."

"Take a walk?! You're not going to listen to what she has to say?" Usopp asked.

"Nah, I'm good."

Luffy then proceeds to walk off. Well, not like I have to listen. I've heard this story multiple times already. And besides, if what is going to transpire is going to happen…

"I'm going to look for Sen." I tells them as I walked off.

* * *

After re-entering the village, I took a quick look around, hoping to spot a freaking fedora in the crowd. Still, it was like finding a needle in a haystack. There's nothing much to distinguish Sen from the rest of the crowd at all!

I then took notice of something. A ship? But that size and colour scheme is–OH SHIT! A Marine's vessel?! Then Nezumi is already here! And I don't see Luffy around, or Genzo either. Damn it!

"Excuse me, where's the orange plantation here?" I asked.

"Huh? Nami's place? It's down this road up that hill but–"

"Thanks!" I rushed down the road despite the man's warnings, hoping to get to there in time. Oh god, please let me make it in time! Then I paused. What if I changed the plot? This could blew up in my face! I mean, I've hardly change anything with Don Krieg and I was just some random prisoner to Arlong.

But if I interrupt the search, I could change the entire plot all together. I might accidentally causing a character to die–

A gunshot is heard. Multiple. I looked up the hill, a few moments later three people ran down passed me. Genzo has Nojiko in his arms, she is bleeding from her abdomen. Gunshot. Nezumi shot her. A civilian… It was according the plot, but…

I made up my mind. Fuck keeping to the plot!

Nezumi is not leaving this place with Nami's hard-earned cash. No matter how dirty it may be!

* * *

When I arrived at the plantation, Nezumi and his men already digging up what seems to be a large box with shimmering gold accessories among other shiny things. The marine captain, no, the RAT has his grubby hands in the box, checking out every little trinket and bills.

You are not getting that money. Not on my watch!

I take a deep breath, before charging in. And this time, I drew my sword.

A few rush steps in, I may have alerted a marine soldier who turned around but I rushed in. I swing down my weapon, the blade cutting down into his torso as blood spray out of the wound. It might be lethal, but they followed his command.

They made their choice.

The other soldiers are alerted by my attack but it doesn't matter. I turned and swings my sword up cutting into another soldier. The rest all panic a little as they reach for their rifles and sabres, I just take my stance with both hands on my sword in a standard kendo stance.

Okay, breath… focus… there are around ten soldiers and one rat. Remember what Sen taught me… when dealing with a crowd, don't let them gang up on me. Separate them and take them down one by one…

"Chichichi, what do we have here?" The rat chuckles, "A friend of the thief? Well, I must let you know that this treasure is now under Marine custody. If you look the other way, I'll give you mercy and ignore what happened here. I'll give you a share of the treasure too."

"…yeah, no deal." I smirked, "I don't take orders from RATS."

I didn't think that one person can turn purple from anger alone. Guess I thought wrong.

"Shoot this vermin at once!"

"Yes, sir!"

Alright, show time! Just as practiced… Feet slightly off the ground, joints bend, grip firm… yeah, let's do this.

The soldiers all aimed their rifles at me, but their single-row formation make it easier for me. I charged forward, just fast enough as when they fired, I'm in my range and passed theirs. I sliced up, cutting down the one in front of me before turning and cutting down the one right to him.

The one on the left is smart to swing his gun instead of firing but that just allowed me to dodge that easily and bang my shoulder into him, knocking him and the others behind him to the ground.

I turned to the rest and stabbed at the one in front of me, missing his head but use that position to slice down his torso. The others behind him have the smart idea to draw their sabres out and charge at me.

I parried the first strike, dodging the one on my right as I pulled back. I then reflexively turned around and cut down the one that tried to attack me from behind. Thank you Sen and your reflex training hell!

The others all charged straight forward at me, my sword poised and ready. What was that technique… the one speciality is for crowd-control situations…

Oh yeah, that one!

"Dragon-Sword Style:…" I pulled back my swing, my front feet firm while slightly off the ground, "Clashing Wings!" I swing my blade as hard as I could, making somewhat of a circle around me as I slices all of the soldier's by the chest in one fell swoop. This caused all of the soldiers to collapse on the floor.

That… actually went better than I thought… or most soldiers are really that useless.

Nezumi looked at me in horror, before pulling a gun out of his coat, "Y-You bitch! Do you have any idea what you're doing?!"

"Don't know, don't care." I tells him with a smirk, a bullet moved passed my head by a far margin, "…Your aim sucks."

"I-I'm a marine captain!" The rat shouted, "I-If you hurt me, Arlong won't forgive you! I'll make sure you'll never have a safe place to stay again!"

"…Doesn't really matter." I stated raising my sword up to swing, "Because I'm joining the future Pirate King's crew."

"W-Wait!"

"Nope!"

I swings down hard, stopping just barely reach his face. A moment later, he fainted onto his back with foam coming out of his mouth. "Hopefully, there isn't much repercussions from this…" I sheathed my sword as I entered the grove.

Nami's treasure trove was half-dig out of the ground, shovels to the side. Taking the lid of the box, I put it back on top of the box before pulling it into the house to hide it.

After this, I took a run towards Arlong Park.

Let's hope I made it for the epic entrance.

* * *

After several minutes of running, I made it to the entrance, where most of the villagers have gathered with arms at hand. At the entrance, guarded Johnny and Yosaku, badly bruised and blood covering most of their body.

I must have made it before Luffy and the rest. I quickly went up to them, "Johnny, Yosaku!"

"Ah! Sister Rein!" Yosaku stated in shock, "Why are you doing here?"

"To serve Arlong his ass, why?"

"It's too dangerous!" Johnny shouted at me, "Don't worry, Brother Luffy and the others will arrive soon!"

"I know." I smiled at them, "That's why I'm here."

"Eh…?"

"Hey, you're that girl that was with that long-nose's friends, right?" Nojiko asked me, "Why are you here?"

"…Because the guy behind that door has caused you guys too much suffering for the past eight years." I tell her, her eyes widen as the other villagers gasped as well, "And all because of a misguided agenda. Also…"

I looked behind her and smiled, four familiar figures walking up the road becoming more visible by the second, "I want to impress my future crewmates, after all."

"They're here!"

The villagers all turned around from the bounty hunters' proclamations, the Straw Hats Pirates all walking up towards us.

"Brother Luffy!" Johnny cheered.

"Move aside, Johnny." The pirate captain said as he winds up his fist.

The next scene was fast, as the steel gate was blown off its hinges with the rubber man's punch. He took a step forward, "Who's the one called Arlong?"

The climax begins.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **So yeah! Done! Time for the big fight! So, yeah. Rein kicks all sorts of ass in this, huh?**

 **But to those who are thinking: 'Why is Rein so un-empathetic towards killing?', in the prologue, she/he witnessed killing of pirates by a marine lieutenant, blood split and bodies down sorts of death first hand.**

 **She/He knows by heart that they would have to kill in the future, for survival or otherwise.**

 **And to those that have quite a hateful reaction towards last chapter…**

 **I've edited out the rape scene, deleted it all together and won't write another one ever again.**

 **Maybe.**

 **But that depends.**

 **Anyway, I hope Rein isn't somewhat mary-sue in this. At least I think she isn't.**

 **So yeah, thanks for the criticisms, that much is appreciated, truly it is!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	8. Ch 8:Here comes a dragon!

**Chapter 8: Here comes a dragon!**

* * *

"Arlong? That's me, but…" Arlong stated from his chair.

"I'm Luffy."

"Luffy? I see. And what are you?"

"A pirate."

I swallowed my spit as my future captain walked up towards the shark fishman with fists clenched. That is until two of his crew stepped in his way. Then they are out of his way when he knocked both their heads into each other.

I almost laughed at how quickly those 'upper humans' are put down. Guess they never really expect a powerhouse like Luffy in the weakest sea.

"So? What does a pirate want with me–?"

Arlong's almost calm façade is broken when Luffy sucker-punched him in the wall hard. "A-ARLONG?!"

"Don't you DARE make my navigator cry!" Luffy growled.

"Why you…!"

"How dare you!"

The entire Arlong crew leaped forwards attacking Luffy, but then Sanji flashed passed me, "Small fries should just get the hell back!" and kicks all of them away with ease, "Jeez, running in head-first like that…"

"Don't worry, I ain't gonna lose."

"Dumbass! When did I say I was worried for you?!" Me, Zoro and Usopp walked in after them. "I only mean that you shouldn't hog the gory all for yourself." Sanji tells him, pulling loosening his tie.

"I d-don't particular mind either w-way, L-Luffy…" Usopp stuttered.

"Aren't you gutsy?" Zoro sighed, before turning to me, "And you, what are you doing here?"

"Don't try and push me away." I tells him with a huff, "I have my own debts to pay here. And I was planning on asking your captain something."

"Huh? Luffy?"

"Hm? Ask me?" Luffy looked at me curious.

"After we defeat Arlong." I tells them.

"So your goal from the beginning was Nami, is that it?!" Arlong laughed, "Shahahaha! Just what could four measly _humans_ do?!"

"As if Arlong would fight the likes of you! I'll turn you all into fish food!" Hachi then blows a trumpet with his mouth, which is quite disturbing to be honest. "Come out, Sea King!"

"W-W-W-What's going on?!" Usopp cried.

Oh yeah, Momoo was a major power in this fight, right…?

"Come out, Momoo!"

The waters bulged up as a large creature rises from the sea, revealing the 'terrifying' Sea Cow. Which, honestly… Oda actually did a really great job in showcasing him. Or her. Anyway, it is as unterrifying as any normal cow, even with that size.

"AGGHHH! A monster!" Of course Usopp would be the one screaming.

"Huh?" I think Hachi notices the injuries.

"Oh, him?" Luffy stated.

"So, he's one of them huh?" Sanji coined in.

And within seconds, it slowly take its leave, "O-Oi! Momoo! Where are you going?!"

I wouldn't blame the cow. Luffy and Sanji can be scary in their own ways.

"Momoo, the hell do you think you're going?" Arlong asked menacingly, causing the Sea Cow to stop, "Well, if you're going to run away, I'm not going to stop you but-"

"Oh, a Sea King."

And on that note, Momoo just dived into the waters and swam away. Everyone all looked at me, with a smile and a shrug. "I was talking about him?" They stared at me blankly, "The cow."

"Oooooooooooooh…" Everyone nodded with understanding.

"You damn human _bitch_ …" Arlong growled at me.

"Hey! I wasn't the one that hit the cow!" I stated, pointing at Luffy and Sanji, "They did!"

"Hm?"

"…MOMOO, GET THE FUCK OUT HERE AND MURDER THESE GUYS OR I'LL PERSONALLY TURN YOU INTO STEAK!"

Then silence, before the Sea Cow bursts out of the water roaring (More like mooing though), the rest of the Fishmen all charging towards us as well.

Huh, there goes that plan. We all readied to fight, until Luffy slammed his fists together with a huff, "Leave it to me! They are just a bunch of time-wasters!"

And then he stomps his feet through the concrete. "The hell he's doing?" Sanji asked worriedly.

"I don't have a good feeling about this…" Zoro stated.

"You and me both…" I agreed. Why do I have a sinking feeling that I should duck and cover?

Luffy then spun his body around like a rubber band knocking down some of the pirates before stretching his rubber arms and grabbing Momoo's horns. Okay, that is really weird to see in real-life. It's those extremely flexible gymnasts when they bend their body in ways it shouldn't be bend.

Wait, feet in concrete, body twisted, arms on the sea cow… oh shit!

"Hey! Let's get out of here!" Zoro cried.

"Wha-But what's he doing?!" Sanji asked.

"Something not good!" I shouted as we ran for cover.

"Gum-Gum…" Luffy starts to spin with the large beast in tow, "PINWHEEL!" The large rubber and cow tornado crashes into every fishman that wasn't smart enough to dodge it before flinging the Sea Cow out and away from Arlong Park.

"I didn't come here to fight these small fries!" Luffy declared as he pointed at Arlong, "The one I want to beat up is YOU!"

"How excellent." Arlong grins menacingly, "I was thinking of killing you myself."

"Seems we have no choice but to fight…" The ray fishman stated, Kuroobi I believe. His elbows are MASSIVE!

"How dare you hurt our brothers!?" Hachi shouted angrily.

"Looks like we need to teach these humans the difference between our races, chu!" The kiss fish, I think that was the species, fishman stated, named Chew I think. And jeez, his lips made Hachi's looked normal!

"Oh great, I was hoping not to fight today…" One of the remaining fishmen sighed tiredly. Hey, I think that's the guy that shouted at Momoo before. He seems to be a clownfish, with the orange scales and white strip markings along them. His face looked normal enough though. Not too fish-like. Even his teeth resembles human teeth than anything else.

"Looks like their main force has come to greet us…" Zoro stated.

"That was way too dangerous, you idiot!" Sanji shouted kicking Luffy in the head.

"Are you TRYING to kill us?!" Usopp shouted.

"Forgotten the randomness he brings…" I muttered to myself.

"Hey, Joudan, think you could handle a girl?" Kuroobi asked.

"I'm lazy, but not weak, jackass." The clownfish, Joudan, growled at him, "But yes, if I must."

"Alright then. Arlong, please just sit right there."

"If we let you fight enraged, Arlong Park would be torn down in the process, chu." Chew stated.

"Hey, that octopus is doing something." Zoro tell us. Did Usopp moved several steps back just now?

"First boil the octopus in salt water, slice it up, and add some olive oil and paprika to make an excellent side dish while drinking…" Sanji listed out.

"Wait, you want to eat him?!" I cried.

"Uh, guys… I'm in a bit of a pickle…" Luffy tells us.

"Take this! Shikai Zero: Takohachi Black!" Hachi proceeds to spew ink at us, which we dodged easily except for Luffy who got a completely cover in the black liquid.

"Aggghhhh! I can't see!"

"You dumbass! Why didn't you dodge?!" Zoro cried.

"Ah! Luffy, watch out!" Usopp cried as the octopus fishman lifts up a large rubble ready to smash down on the straw hat pirate, "Dodge it!"

"I can't!" Luffy cried, "My feet are stuck! And my eyes are blind!"

"What."

"For god sake…"

"You're the one who did that to yourself!"

"Oh right, that drawback…"

Guess who says what.

"Takohachi Black… On the rocks!" Hachi then smashes down on Luffy. The rubble then broke on impact, Sanji having his leg up from kicking the rock.

"Ah, jeez, looks like I've chosen one heck of a dumbass as my captain…" He sighed.

"My thoughts exactly." Zoro agreed.

"He's amazing!" Usopp stated shockingly.

"That he is." I smiled.

"Rein-chwan~ Do you see my _dashing_ performance~?"

"Yeah, yeah, I did, great job…" I sighed waving the dancing cook off. If he's doing this everything time we're in the same room, I'm kicking him.

"For a human, you're not half-bad…" Kuroobi stated, "But a pirate spouting out chivalrous lines? How half-assed."

"Heh, would you like to test just how half-assed my chivalry is, Mr Fish?" Sanji asked waving his cigarette and blowing out a puff of smoke, "Despite what you may think, I've lived half my life as a pirate."

"It seems that you fools don't understand the level we fishmen are at."

Okay, Kuroobi is paired against Sanji, as scheduled… Hachi is going to attack Luffy and Usopp but Zoro would intervened, so they are good to go. That leave me with…

"Sorry young lady." I turned to face Joudan, "But since you trespassed here, I can't just ignore you." In his hand is a metallic nunchaku, two black iron sticks linked to each other by some metal chains.

"No need for apologizes." I tell him as I draw my sword, "I wasn't planning on standing on the side-lines in the first place."

And then at that moment, Usopp ran passed us with Chew hot on his tail. We both turned to look at the chase, and how the fishman paused in front of the villagers before getting hit by Usopp's explosive ammunition and then back to chasing the sniper.

"…Your friend is… um…"

"Yeah, he's… a unique fighter…"

Joudan groaned a little, I think I hear him mumbling, "And here I thought humans can't get any weirder…"

"Arlong, I've asked you not to fight." I heard Kuroobi said, I spotted Arlong walking up towards Luffy.

"I ain't going to fight but…" He eyed my future captain, Luffy decided to retaliate by throwing his rubber punch right at Arlong while declaring to kick his ass, the shark-man grabbed the wrist with ease. "Do you seriously think that you can win against us?"

"You BET I think so!" Luffy shouted, "And let go of my arm!"

"Now, now…" Arlong smirked as he dug his hands into the concrete before lifting up a good chunk of it with Luffy still attached to it, "Why don't we play a game? Devil fruit users are said to be unable to swim. Well, in this situation, even a non-devil fruit user wouldn't be able to swim!"

"Don't tell me…!" Zoro said.

"He's going to throw him into the sea?!" Sanji cried.

"Not good!" I muttered in shock.

"Gum-Gum Pistol!" Luffy punches straight at Arlong, the fishman captain catching and biting into his fist with his extremely sharp teeth drawing blood. "Why you…! Take this!" The rubber man then bites into his arm in retaliation.

"He does realise that won't work, right?" Joudan stated.

I didn't response, as I saw Arlong toss Luffy into the salty waters. I nearly panicked to dash into the water the same time Sanji did but then Zoro stopped us, "Wait you dumbasses! Don't go acting so rashly! Going into the sea is what these guys are after!" He stated, "There's only one way to save Luffy."

"You mean we have to beat these guys to a pulp on land before jumping into the sea, right?" Sanji pointed out, "Fine by me."

"Same here!" I tells them.

"I'll end this in five seconds!" Zoro shouted as he rushed towards Hachi with his sword drawn.

"Takohachi Black!" The octopus sprayed ink right at him but he dodged it and slicing right at his head. Hachi manages to dodge that attack but left his white hair cut. "NYU! My hair! Why you…! But I'll forgive you since it's only my hair! The important thing is that I'm still alive!"

"Oh? Is that so? Thanks."

I took notice of Zoro's panting, did his wounds opened up? My stitching isn't perfect but it should hold… somewhat…

"Where are you looking?"

I manages to get my sword up in time when Joudan swung his weapon right at me, his metal rod against my blade. I feel my weapon vibrates from that impact before seeing another strike coming in from the other side.

I manages to duck under it before falling back a little, Joudan holding onto his weapon over and under his shoulders. Those things are fast and hit hard! Why it had to be nunchaku?! Can't it be something simple like a staff or something?!

"I'm not liking this, but if you have to do something, might as well do it right." Joudan stated.

"Of course, you'll say that…" I groaned, before rushing forward to stab him but he caught my blade between the chains. He then pull me in and kicked me in the stomach hard. I nearly let go of my sword but I held on, just as I resist the urge to throw-up my lunch, or lack of.

"Well now, aren't you a tough one?" He stated in surprise as he left go of my blade and I stumbled back into my stance, "I guess you didn't come here as a mere show of bravado after all."

"That's a little insulting." I stated firmly, my stomach aching a little. I guess the whole fishman are stronger than humans isn't all talk after all…

We then heard a body dropping onto the floor, I turning to see Zoro slumped on the floor. "Just as I thought… the wounds from Hawkeye still haven't…!" Sanji stated panicking.

"Shit! Zoro!" I cried.

"Now's my chance!" Hachi proclaimed from the pillar, "Takoyaki Punch!" He proceeds to deliver a series of punches into the concrete structure before leaping off it as the roof cracked and break from the lack of support. "Meet your doom as you get crushed, Roronoa Zoro!"

"Why don't you get crushed instead?"

Hachi was then grabbed by the shoulder before Zoro tossed him under the falling roof for him as it crushed right on top of him.

The moss-haired swordsman stumbled a few feet before slumping back down onto the floor, "Damn it… of all the times… why now…"

"His wounds are just too deep!" I hear Yosaku cried, "They haven't fully healed yet!"

"Obviously! It's a wound that would disable a man for at least half a year if not kill him!" Johnny cried.

"I was afraid of that…!" I muttered.

"I knew something was up when he acted normal even after receiving those wounds!" Sanji stated, "That moron!"

"TE!"

The blonde cook was then sent flying out of Arlong Park through the wall by a punch courtesy of the manta ray fishman, "I've warned you before not to look somewhere else." Kuroobi stated huffing, "I'm a 40th level Fishman-Karate Practitioner!"

"Brother Cook!"

"Sanji!"

"Sorry, lady!" I could barely turned back when a metal rod hits my temple hard, I blacked out for a second before I feel myself flying and crashing into the wall so hard that a spider-web crack was formed from my impact.

"Sister Rein!"

I can barely hear anything, the ringing in my ear and the splitting headache is messing with my senses. I was on the grassy ground, blood spilling over the left side of the face. God I feel awful… My sword is still in my hand, didn't drop it at least.

Crap, this is what Zoro and the others handled like bug bites? They really are monsters in their own right.

But I can't let this put me down! Not now! Not at the starting line!

I struggled a little, my sense of balance is a little shaken, but I manages to get back on my feet. I tighten my grip before slowly walking forward. My stance is all sloppy but I need to at least get near to the fight.

"Drifting Wolf Blade!"

I manages to arrive just as Zoro with his bandana on got passed Hachi and sword wounds opened up on the octopus' chest. He got Johnny's and Yosaku's swords in his hands. Zoro just started fighting seriously, then…

"Oh, Joudan, that girl is up." Arlong pointed out.

"What?! I'm sure I've knocked her out!" Joudan cried.

"That's not even enough to put me down…" I panted at him. I'm pretty much bullshitting with him now, my head is splitting and I'm putting it all I've got just to stand.

"You reeeaaaallly made me mad now, nyu!" Hachi shouted angrily, "I'd swear I'll kill you! Just think about it logically! There's no way you could beat my six swords with your three!"

"Logically?" Zoro panted out, "Seems like you've made an error in your calculation. I may only have three swords, but the weight of our swords are completely different!"

"The weight? You mean your swords are heavier than mine?" The octopus stated angrily, "Don't be stupid! You may not realize it just be looking at them, but each of my swords weighs 300kg! They are far heavier than any swords you puny humans use!"

"Hmph, I have nothing to say to an idiot like you…"

"Nyuuu…!" Hachi growled as he placed his swords' tip together in front of him, "Six-Swords Style, Octopus Pot Stance! Take this! New Year's…" He dashed forward towards Zoro, he blocking the six tips, "…Octopus Opener!" He then swung his swords up, breaking the pirate hunter's guard.

"And… Body Slam!" He then added a tackle for good measure, sending Zoro flying into the air.

"Zoro…!" I muttered in shock, before remembering Joudan as he swung his weapon at me, the metal nunchaku barely misses my head as I leaned back to dodge it. But that ruined my balance a little as I nearly fall over.

I barely got back my stance and I just got my guard up for another strike from the opposite direction.

"Shit! Just go to sleep already!" Joudan shouted as he starts attacking from all sorts of angles at incredible speed. There's one thing I know about nunchaku, is that they are quite versatile if wielded correctly. They can come from all directions and are hard to keep track of.

But one other thing I know about nunchaku is that they have a smaller effective range than swords. So I keep dodging and blocking as I moved back from the incoming attacks. But my legs are weakening by the second and some of his attacks manages to hit me. I need an opening, just one! Then I can counter!

"GYAAHH!"

And I've got one. Hachi's screams of pain from what I guessed Zoro's counterstrike to his spinning swords has manages to get Joudan's attention just long enough for me to strike back. I pointed my sword forward with the edge outwards and stabbed forward.

"Dragon-Sword Style: Tail Spike!"

The clownfish is caught by surprise as I manages to cut his side with that attack. But it wasn't deep enough for any serious injuries.

"Ah! That hurts, damn it!" He shouted at me before swinging his nunchaku at me, I manages to turn around and parried the metal rod away. "W-What?!"

"This is my starting point…" I stated firmly, "I'm not dropping like a fly here!" I dashed and swung my blade down hard, Joudan raising his weapon to block it but I cut right through the chains holding the two metal sticks together.

"M-My weapon…!" Joudan stumbled back a little in shock.

"New Year's-!"

"Oni-Giri!"

Just as Zoro broke all of Hachi's swords with his signature attack. "Now do you understand the difference in the weight of our swords?" He stated with a smirk, "I hope you're satisfied, octopus…!"

"T-Takoyaki Punch!"

"Dragon Twister!" Zoro spun his swords with enough force that it forms somewhat of a tornado that cuts as well as sends Hachi flying into the sky high with several deep cuts all over his torso.

"H-Hachi!" Joudan cried, not looking at me and giving me a good opening.

"Rising Claw!" I swings it from underneath him, cutting diagonally upwards across his torso to his shoulder blade, "And for good measure… Crushing Fang!" I slices straight down the middle, cutting his chin and opening up his chest ever so slightly.

Joudan groaned a little, before collapsing onto his back just as Hachi landed on the rubble. I breathed in heavily, blood still dripping from my head and I think I'm getting a little light-headed.

"That's… for underestimating me, asshole…"

And then, I know nothing but darkness.

…

Sen yawned a little as he sat on the deck of the marine battleship. "I'm bored…"

Across the deck, there lies countless marine soldiers all unconscious without a single bruise on them. Some of them still have their rifles in their hands.

"Geez, the East Blue sure is boring." He stated, "Peaceful, but boring. Even the marines stationed here aren't that promising."

"Y-You…!" One of the soldiers walked up to him with a sword at hand, "What did you do?!"

Sen looked at him, a small twitch in his eyes and the soldier suddenly collapsed onto the floor, his sword clattering harmlessly on the deck.

"Well, I manage to get what I wanted." He patted the few crates wrapped in rope under him, "Might as well bail. I think I saw a small sailing boat at the docks somewhere…"

*SPEEWWWWW*

He then notices the spurt of water bursting into the air from Arlong Park's direction. He adjusted his fedora a little, before smirking.

"A little peek won't hurt anyone."

…

When I regained unconsciousness, I feel the pain of my head wound hitting me hard like a goddamn truck along with the countless bruises on me stinging as well. I groaned slightly as I slowly get onto my feet, I notices Hachi back on his feet with his arms in front of him defensively.

"Huh?" He puts his hand down, "Damn it! I thought that rubber band might have hit me!"

"WHAAATTTT?!" The villagers and… is that Nami?

"Hah! That's exactly what I was aiming for!" Usopp shouted… wait, Usopp?! That means he defeated Chew!

And that means this is when-

"I won't let you bastards have your way!" Hachi shouted as he is about to make for the water.

"Like hell you are!" I manages to run up to him and punches him on the back of the head as hard as I can muster. The octopus slumped onto the ground unconscious just a few inches from the water, a goose-egg on his head from where I punched him.

"Ah! Sister Rein!" Johnny and Yosaku cheered.

"You should have remained down, woman…" Zoro tells me he was blocking Arlong's… nose?

"It's hard to sleep with all your racket, moss-head." I stated.

This situation means that Luffy is about to be rescued by Sanji. With Hachi out of the picture, it should be smooth-sailing for him. Now, we just have to distract Arlong long enough for-

"Why are you relaxing for?" Arlong smirked, "Either way, you all are going to die!" He then stabbed forward right at his wounds, drawing even more blood.

"Zoro!" I screamed as I picked up my sword and swung right at him. The shark bites down onto my blade and shatters it with his sharp teeth, I falling forward from the lack weight and he punches me in the gut and sends me flying over the gate and past the villagers, crashing onto the dirt path.

"Sister Rein!" Johnny cried.

"Oi, Rein, you alright?!" Usopp asked worriedly.

"I-I'm fine… somewhat…" I assures him as I struggled to get back up, before retching and coughing out blood from my mouth.

"Like hell you are!" One of the villagers stated as he walked up to me. Sunglasses and black bandana… the doctor, right? What was his name…? Na… so? Nako…?

"I-It's fine…! I can still fight…" I assures him.

"No you're not!" He tells me, "I'm a doctor! And I know a dangerous injury when I see one! You're not fighting!"

"But-!"

"ZORO!"

Usopp's cry froze my heart for a moment, I turned to see Zoro held by the neck by Arlong.

"Zoro!" I screamed as I try to rush to his aid but several villagers held me down, "Let me go!"

"If you go in there, you'll die!" Nako shouted at me.

"B-But Zoro!"

"I'M BACK!"

A scream echoed through the skies, I looked up to the clouds to see a familiar lanky figure in the air.

"It's that rubber boy!" One of the villagers pointed out.

"Brother Luffy!" Johnny and Yosaku cheered.

"Luffy!" Nami stated happily.

"…Luffy…" I panted. He's out. That means Sanji did it! And this means that it's over! Arlong is finished!

I sighed in relief as I sat down on the dirt exhausted. With this, the Arlong arc is coming to a close soon. Even without my involvement, Luffy will defeat Arlong. That much is assured.

"Zoro!" I then notices his arms stretched and holding onto Zoro's, "Switch!" He then sends his first mate flying out into the waters.

"YOU DUMBASS!" Everyone shouted at him, I just laughed my head off, before flinching at the pain at by abdomen.

"You shouldn't laugh too much." Nako tells me, "From what I can see, your guts are probably pulverized and your three of your ribs are cracked. Your skull is cracked too, and that might leave a scar."

"I see…" So in retrospect, I should be unconscious but I'm not. Huh, chuck that one to anime bullshit.

"Either way, we can only hope now…"

"No need to." I stated with a smile as I watch Luffy pummel Arlong's ass into the building, "He will win. I can assure of that."

"Go, Luffy!" Usopp cheered, "I'll be backing you up from here!"

"Huh? So he's fighting Arlong, is it?" I turned to see the owner of that voice, Sen casually wandered up from somewhere.

"Sen, there you are!" I stated angrily, "Where were you?!"

"The sky is so pretty so I took a walk." He laughed, "So, our future Pirate King verses Arlong, huh?" We then witness the god-awful display of swordsmanship from Luffy as Sen turned to me confused, "Does he even knows how to wield those?"

"No, no he doesn't." I stated.

The swords are then flicked off and bitten in half but then Arlong was hit in the jaw hard that broke all his teeth, leaving the shark trashing around on the ground in pain.

"Of course I don't know how to fight with swords, dumbass!" Luffy shouted, "I don't know a thing about navigation either! I can't cook! I can't even lie! I'm confident that I wouldn't be able survive if other people aren't there to help me!"

"Shahaha! Aren't you an honest one? Admitting your worthlessness like that." Arlong laughed, "Must be quite hard for your crewmates to deal with such an incompetent captain like you. It's a wonder why do they try so desperately hard to save you."

"You call yourself fit to be a captain when you don't have even a single ounce of self-confidence?!" He shouted, "Just exactly CAN you do?!"

"I can beat you." Luffy smirked.

I laughed a little at that proclamation, turning to see Sen's reaction. But his was not one that I expect. His eyes were glazed over, like he was in a middle of remembering something, like he was looking at the fight but not at the same time.

"Sen?"

"…Fate sure is strange…" He chuckled, "It's been over twenty years since Roger died and the Era of Piracy began. Countless pirates declared themselves worthy of the throne, countless of them perish just by entering the Grand Line."

"But for the first time…" He grins, "…in the past two decades, have I seen somewhat so worthy of inheriting his crown. Worthy of that title. And it would be a rubber man that couldn't do anything on his own. It's like looking into the past…"

"Sen…"

He pulls his fedora down to cover his eyes, "He might be the one… the one would inherit HIS will with Roger…"

HIS? Not Roger's alone? What does Sen knows?

"Sharks-on-Darts!" I turned and saw Arlong flying out of the water at insane speeds and crashing into his building while hurting Luffy in the process. The shark got out of the hole he made before aiming right at Luffy, "Shark-on-Darts!" He dashed right through the air towards him, my future captain dodging him and his sharp nose stabs into the concrete.

Okay, seeing Arlong being held in the air by his nose alone is really bizarre.

"Shark-on-Darts!"

Arlong dashes through Luffy again.

"Sharks-on-Darts!"

And again. He then jumped into the water.

Okay that wasn't very descriptive, but that scene wasn't that detailed anyway.

"Luffy, hide!" Usopp tells him, "Arlong jumped into the water again!"

"Hurry up and hide, Brother Luffy!" Johnny and Yosaku cried.

"…No."

"Don't be stupid!" I hear Sanji shouted, "He's aiming for you, right now! You've got to hide right away!"

"I said no!" Luffy shouted, "I'll catch him, and crush that nose of his!"

"Don't you know what the word 'hide' means?!" Usopp cried, "You only barely manages to dodge his attacks! If he lands a direct hit next time, you'll die!"

"Gum-Gum Shield!" Luffy widen his stance and pulls his fingers with his palm facing out.

"Shark-on-Darts!" Arlong shoots out of the water and rammed into Luffy. Instead of being cut, Luffy just bounced off the shark with no injuries from that attack as Arlong smashes into the building.

It looked like he found a way against that attack but then have to dodge another flying attack from Arlong. As the shark is dashing for him in the air, Luffy pulls his hand back and pulled forward, "Gum-Gum Net!" His fingers stretches outwards, forming somewhat of a net.

Arlong's attack was caught in that rubber net, slowing his momentum by a lot before the fingers are pulled back, "Followed by… Spear!" He slams the tip of his toes into the shark, sending him crashing into the concrete hard with him coughing out blood.

"It worked!" Everyone cheered.

But then, Arlong's eyes tensed as veins are visible in his irises. I think I hear Sanji stating something about going berserk…?

"How dare an inferior human do this to me, a fishman?!" Arlong grabbed Luffy out of the air and throw him into the building. He then lunges forward to crush him but the straw hat pirate leaped up to dodge it with his fist punching into the wall.

The shark then pulls out a large saw twice his size from the wall. The Kiribachi is a terrifying beast to look at, the weapon is a lot larger than any conventional weapons and Arlong swings it like it's made out of Styrofoam!

Speaking of which, Arlong proceeds to try and crush Luffy with that weapon, climbing up the building with him with each swing. After that, they smashes through the top floor.

"The left window on the top floor…" I hear Nami stated, "It's the cartography room!"

When I hear that, I know what's coming up. And I know Nami's going to like it.

Several moments later, something crashes out of the building, a table of sorts. That is followed by several bookshelves, chairs and papers all fluttering down. I looked at Nami, the ginger-headed girl covering her mouth as tears flowed down her cheeks.

Yeah, that's the way. Luffy sure knows who his friends' true enemies are quite easily.

The tossing of office items stopped, leaving us a few tense moments waiting for something. And then finally, a foot shoots out of the roof with its stretched leg with it. A few seconds later, it pulls down into the building and the entire pagoda cracks.

"L-Look! After that impact, Arlong Park is…!"

"It's all coming down!"

"It's too dangerous!" Yosaku declared, "Everyone evacuate immediately!"

"Can you still walk?" One of the villagers asked me, I nodded as he helped me to my feet and we get the hell out of there.

Arlong Park soon collapsed on itself, leaving it a large rubble of stone and wood.

"Arlong Park is… destroyed…" Nako stated.

"…Just what the heck happened here…?" Yosaku wonders.

A few tense moments later, with everyone wondering who won, Luffy stepped out of the rubble, bloodied but alive.

"Luffy!"

"Brother Luffy!" Yosaku and Johnny cried in joy.

"NAMI!" Luffy suddenly shouts, "You're my crewmate, got it?!"

He won. Luffy won! Arlong's defeated!

"GO, LUFFY-Gah!" I keep forgetting about my fractured ribs, damn it! Ow…!

"He won!" Everyone cheered, "Arlong Park has fallen!"

The villagers all cheered and celebrated. I too have danced in joy if weren't for my wounds, but I can feel it. The relief, the happiness, they all are radiating with positivity.

"That's enough celebrating!"

And of course it would be ruined.

Nezumi and his soldiers arrived with rifles loaded and ready, though some of the soldiers are bandaged up.

God dammit, he's as resilient as a goddamn cockroach! I knew I should have broken his legs!

"Chichichi. What a lucky break this is." He chuckled, "I'd like to thank you all for showing me such an exhilarating battle. Whether by sheer luck or not, I've never guessed that the fishmen would actually be defeated by a bunch of no-name pirates."

"But thanks to you, all the money I have handed to Arlong and the riches of the Arlong Park now belongs to me!"

"Didn't I beat the crap out of all of you?!" I shouted at him.

"Oh, and I'll take great pleasure in arresting you, you thief!" He shouted at me, "Men, arrest that woman-ARGH!"

He was then apprehended by Zoro with his hand around his neck. "It ain't nice to be a wet blanket when people are celebrating."

I smirked as I cracked my knuckles. Round two, it is!

…

A few beatings later, Nezumi and the entire of the 16th branch all laid on the ground bruised and swelled up. "G-Go ahead. Lay eben one binger on me ib yu dare. I swear yu won't ged away widdit…"

"Is his mouth still alive…?" Sanji stated in surprise.

Ah~ My wounds are going to worsen from this. But totally worth it!

Nami then walked passed us with the straw hat now gone from her head. "This is for shooting Nojiko and defiling Bellemere's orange fields."

"Huh?"

She then whacked the rat by the cheek with her bo-staff, sending him into the water. Damn, that girl got some strength!

"Thanks Nami! I feel better already!" Nojiko chimed in.

"Nope! He still need about 1000 more beatings!" Genzo added.

Nezumi surfaced from the water and got his whiskers pulled by Nami, "Now go clean up after the fishmen! Then help rebuild Gosa Village! And you're not to touch any money left here in Arlong Park. That's this island's money!"

"Owowowow! Okwy! Okwy! I'll do whubber yu say!"

"And one more thing." Nami pulls him close to her, "Give. Me. Back. My. Money!"

"Wait, wait, wait! I didn't touwh yur money!"

"Huh?"

"That b-bitch stopped us!"

"Bitch?" Nami turned to me, I gives her a peace sign, "Oh big sis, I love you!" She then tackled me to the ground. AH! THE PAIN!

"Grr…! Listen well, you rotten pirates! Especially you, you straw-hat boy!" Nezumi shouted as he and his soldiers all swam away, "You said your name was Luffy, was it?! And you're the captain, right?! Let me just say you're going get your just-desserts for angering me! I swear I'll get you back for this!"

"He said you're gonna get your just-desserts." Sanji tells Luffy.

"How'd he know that I deserve to be the Pirate King?" He wonders.

"That's not what he meant, you dumbass." Zoro groaned.

"W-What do we do, guys?!" Usopp cried panicking, "What happens if he really does get back at us?!"

"You guys are pirates, aren't you?" I stated, "It doesn't matter when, you're going to get marked by the marines one way or the other."

"That's very bad!" Usopp cried, "Marines are going to chase us everywhere now!"

"…Hey, didn't you have something to ask Luffy?" Zoro asked.

Oh yeah, I did say that, didn't I? Well, the moment I was waiting for here. Let's pray I've impressed him enough.

"May I join your pirate crew?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Oh, okay then- WHAT?!"

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Yup! A long one! I wanted to finish the Arlong Arc in one go, since it's not that long. Sorry for the parts that seems lazy, the fight with Arlong isn't one that can be easily translated into words.**

 **So yeah, Rein is part of the Straw Hats now! Hip hip hooray I guess?**

 **Also, I hope I've worked her fighting style properly. Hoped she isn't too powerful from the start…**

 **So, yeah. Arlong arc is coming to a close next chapter!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	9. Ch 9:Adventure awaits!

**Chapter 9: Adventure awaits!**

* * *

After the battle at Arlong Park, we were pushed to the doctors where we were stitched and bandaged up. The ones with the most injuries are Zoro, Sanji and Me. Usopp hardly got any injuries aside from a few bruises and Luffy hardly got hurt despite the bites marks on several parts of his body.

Soon, the entire island knows that Arlong is defeated, that they are free. And that prompt of the start of one of the largest party I have ever been to.

People sang, dance, eat and drink to their hearts contents. I even see some tears from the lot of them.

I think I saw a mini-orgy starting in the back…

That aside, with the whole Arlong Park gone and the arc winding down to its conclusion, I was left wondering on Luffy's acceptance of me.

* * *

 _Xx Flashback xX_

" _You accept me?! Just like that?!" I cried at them._

" _Yeah." Luffy stated matter-of-factly._

" _I mean, you want to him to say no?" Zoro asked._

" _No! No, that's not what I mean…" I stated, "I was just… was expecting some questions or something…"_

" _A beautiful angel need no questions, Rein-chwan~!" Sanji cooed, "I'm more than happy to have you!"_

" _Wording, Sanji…" I groaned, "On second thought, you probably meant it."_

" _I, Captain Usopp, also welcomes you–"_

" _Not now, Usopp!" I shouted, "C-Can't I at least ask why?"_

" _Hm? You're cool."_

"… _That's it?"_

" _Yeah."_

"… _I'm not even sure what I was expecting…"_

 _Xx Flashback over xX_

* * *

So, yeah. I am officially a Straw-Hat pirate now. Not sure about how I entered but I'll take what I can get.

Which brings up to my current predicament. I can't find Sen anywhere! I want to at least say my goodbyes!

"Sen… where are you…?" I wandered all over, and still can't find him! Damn it where is he?! Did he… left…? Without a word?

If he did, I'm going to be so angry at him!

I then took notice of movement next to Going Merry, a fedora caught my eye.

"Sen!" I ran up to him, he busy untying the rope to a sailing boat, "There you are!"

"Oh, Rein! You're just in time!" He stated happily, "I've got my supplies and my next destination is charted."

"So… you're leaving?" I looked at him. The man that took care of me for the past six months. Huh… six months? Wow, time sure flew by… It feels like just yesterday that I've came to this world…

"Yeah." He nodded, "You've joined the Straw-Hats, right? So my job as your mentor is done."

"So… you just, leave?"

"What's the matter, miss me?" He chuckled. God that face, that stupid grin.

I'm going to miss that.

"…Why are you crying?"

"H-Huh?" I feel the sides of my eyes, wetness on my skin. "T-That's strange… *hic* They won't *hic* stop…!"

I never knew how painful goodbyes were. It was just me and Sen for the past six months. Just us, sailing about the East Blue, training about at Grand Terra… I wanted to say a proper goodbye but now…

"Come here, you." Sen pulls me into a hug. His scent, his warmth, I'm not going to have these anymore.

I hugged him tightly, decided to let the floodgates open and sobbed into his chest.

"I-I'll miss you…"

"Me too, Rein. Me too."

A few minutes of sobbing later, Sen boards his little boat. "Oh! Almost forgot!" He hands me a letter, "The address on there is a weapon shop in Loguetown I know. Give the owner this when you docked there."

"Oh, okay." I nodded as I keep the letter. His sail unfurled as his small boat sails off, "Don't catch a cold now!"

"Ha! That's what I should be saying!" Sen laughed as he slowly disappear over the horizon.

Sen, the man that saved my life. The man that was my mentor. That man that is an ancient DRAGON. I know we'll meet each other again, on the Grand Line.

I know we will.

* * *

A few miles off the coast, Sen sighed in relief as he relaxed on his boat, "Ah… just me again…" He stated with a smirk, "The Straw-Hat pirates, huh? Going to enjoy hearing about their adventures."

" _Puru puru puru puru"_

He turned to his rucksack, rummaging inside before taking out a baby Den-den mushi with a bluish shell.

" _Ka-cha! Captain! I've been trying to reach you for so long now!"_

"Oh, Luca! Been a while!" Sen laughed.

" _It's been months, Captain! You can't just wander about whenever you want!"_

"How's everyone? Did you and Wulf make up yet?"

" _CAPTAIN!"_

"Alright, alright…" He sighed, "I'm heading to the Calm Belt now. Let's meet up at Tarrento."

" _Roger. And please, no more detours."_

"No promises!"

The snail raged a little before hanging up. Sen keeps the snail and lied down on the boat, "…Maybe a quick stop by Disco Island."

* * *

Three days.

Three full days of non-stop partying.

Man, a lot of them are going to wake up the following day with killer hangovers.

Anyway, once the partying is good and done, all that is left is for us to depart to the Grand Line. We have loaded up as much supplies we can possibly carried on the Going Merry and made preparations for our departure. The entire Cocoyashi village have come to see us off.

Now, we just waiting for our last crew member.

"We must now return back to our jobs as bounty hunters." Yosaku tells us, "So thank you for all your help up to now."

"Though we must say goodbye," Johnny stated, "may we meet once again someplace else in the future."

"I see. Take care now." Luffy said to them.

"Same to you all, our brothers and sister!"

"Try not to get beat up too much now!" I tells them.

"Hm… Where is she?" Usopp wonders.

"Maybe she's not coming?" Zoro stated.

"WHAT?! Is Nami-san really not coming?!" Sanji cried.

"Hey! That raw ham melon you were talking about wasn't anywhere!" Luffy tells him.

"That's not the point!" The blonde cook cried, "Without Nami here, I've lost 59.99% of the reason to board this ship!"

"What's the other 40.01% then?" I asked.

"You, of course, Rein-chwan~"

"Should have known…"

"SET SAIL!"

Her voice echoed in across the skies as I spot Nami running towards us.

"She's running over here? What do we do?" Usopp asked.

"She said set sail so… I guess we set sail." Luffy stated.

"Alright, you hear him!" Zoro shouted, "Raise the sail!"

"Aye, aye!" We all run towards our respective position. Well, I just looked around confused before Sanji just asked me to stand aside and allow 'prince-charming' to do it for me.

"You sure it's okay to let her leave like this?" Sanji asked.

"It's HER goodbye, so let her decide." Luffy explained.

Soon enough, Nami leaped off the docks and lands perfectly on Going Merry's railings. She lifts up her shirt and a large pile of wallet pours out from under it.

"Take care, everyone~"

"YOU ROTTEN LITTLE THIEF!"

I just started laughing my head off at that scene, god she is good at what she does! Man, I'm going to love this crew!

"Goodbye, everyone!" She called out, "I'll be off now!"

We soon set off, off to the great blue horizon where adventure awaits!

* * *

A week later, on Cocoyashi Village.

A marine battleship set docks near the village. Their objective: The capture and escort of the Arlong Pirates.

The soldiers all alight the boat with their captain, the newly promoted Captain Suiren at the helm as she leads her troops through the village.

"I'm looking for a man named, Genzo!" She called out, "May I know where he is?! I'm Captain Suiren of the Marines 20th Branch!"

"God, it's the marines…"

"They better not be like that Nezumi asshole…"

"Shush! She'll hear you!"

Suiren looked around confused, the villagers looking at her with suspicion and caution. Then Genzo walked up to her with slight suspicion in his eyes, "I'm Genzo. You're the marines they sent?"

"Captain Nezumi refused the order, so we're their substitute." She explained, "I believe there was a call for Arlong Pirates."

"Ah, yes. I sent the telegraph." He nodded, "Please, right this way."

A few hours of walking later, they arrived at a storehouse far from village with a villager with a pitch-fork guarding the entrance. After a brief exchange, the doors are opened to reveal the prisoners inside.

The several fishmen all tied up, some in chains instead of rope. Arlong is passed out with Kuroobi and Hachi next to him along with Chew who still bears a few goose-eggs on his head.

"This is the whole crew?" Suiren asked Genzo.

"All of the bastards." He stated.

"I was expecting some of them to be… injured."

"Well, one of the people that captured them asked us not to treat them too badly." He explained, "In her words: 'Treat them like you treat any human being'."

"That's… rather kind thing to say." She stated in surprise, "Alright. Men! Round them up and sent them to the brig!"

"Yes, ma'am!" They saluted and proceed to do just that. Genzo looked at Suiren with wide surprised eyes.

"You're a woman?!"

"Yes, is there a problem?"

"Oh no! Just surprised!" Genzo stated.

"Ma'am!" One of the soldiers saluted, "One of the prisoners wants to have a word with you." Next to him is Joudan handcuffed with rope.

"What do you want?" Suiren asked sternly.

"Oh nothing, just I have some information on one Captain Nezumi." He stated with a smirk, "Information on… I don't know… bribery?"

Suiren looked at him surprised, "And should I believe this information of yours?"

"Oh, I'm not lying." He tells him, "I owe someone a favor for treating us like people. So I'm just returning that favor."

"…Oh? Who may that be?"

"That's my little secret." Joudan laughed, "So, you want to know?"

"…I'm listening…"

* * *

It's been a week since we left the Cocoyashi Village. I've blend in with the other Straw-Hats well. Nami has treated me well, me being the only other female in the group is probably the reason, but she nearly freaked when she realized my lack of wardrobe.

She declared on having a shopping trip with me in the next town we're in, and she don't take no as an answer.

Zoro decided to train with me, nothing to drastic, just exercises in the mornings and stuff like that. And I'm proud to say that I'm able to keep up with Zoro's training. Except the weights, those are impossible for me.

I've placed myself as the chronicler of the crew, to no objection. Turns out, besides Nami and Sanji, none of them knows how to write in a logbook. Luffy don't even know how to write at all!

In the end, the entire week was pretty relaxing, nothing really major have happened so everyone has been doing their own things.

"Another price increase?" Nami stated angrily, "Don't you think it's getting a bit too expensive?"

"Caww…"

"Raise the price again, and I won't be buying your papers anymore." She stated as she slotted a coin into the News Coo's bag.

"What are you getting all riled up about?" Usopp asked as the seagull flew away, "It's just a newspaper."

"Daily expenses all add up, don't you know?!"

"I thought you're done with saving up money?"

"Don't be stupid." Nami tells him, "From now on, I'm going to be saving up money for no one but me alone. There's no way I'm going to be a penniless pirate!"

"Okay, okay. I get it." Usopp groaned as he continued with his chemistry set, "I'm in the middle of developing my secret Tabasco Star, so keep away."

"Hey, why Tabasco?" I asked from my spot with my hands on a fishing rod. Sen apparently left a fishing rod in my rucksack without me knowing. Not that I'm complaining though. With the rate Luffy is eating through our food stock, we need this.

"Why not?" The sniper stated with a smirk, "The liquid is pure hell! Once someone gets this in their eyes, they are rendered completely helpless–"

And then Luffy smashes into him, causing him to spray the red liquid in his eyes.

"GYAAAHHHH!"

"Oh, now I get it." I nodded with understanding.

Ah…This is the best… No real threat, nothing to scare anyone. And oh! I got a bite! I pulled with all my might as I tried reel my catch in. Dinner, you are not getting away from me!

"AHHHHHHHH!-!"

The scream caused me to stumble and fall onto my back, which was lucky as it was the last pull I need to reel up my prey. A pretty big red snapper! Yes!

"What's with the yelling?" I asked.

"T-This!" Nami cried showing me the wanted poster. The same wanted poster for Luffy with the silly grin and all that. Oh yeah, this was the time where he get his first bounty.

"Oh, good for you, captain." I tells him with a thumbs-up which he gladly returned.

"This is not a joke, Rein!" Nami cried, "Oh god, this means that bounty hunters are going to come after us now!"

"Look! My picture's here for the whole world to see! I might as well be famous!" Usopp boasted.

"As if, it's just the back of your head." Sanji mumbled.

"Oh, there's another one." Nami stated as she picked it up, "A new pirate perhaps?" She take a good look at it, before pausing.

"Um, Nami, are you okay?" I asked with Usopp and Sanji dancing in the background.

"Rein, you might want to see this."

"Huh?" I walked up to her to peek at the new wanted poster.

…What?

I rubbed my eyes before looking at it again.

It's a wanted poster… of me.

It has my picture, the one with a nefarious smirk facing forward taken at just the right angle so that one of my eyes is shadowed. My name under is the under the picture, my first name anyway, along with the amount. 15 000 000 beli… wasn't that Buggy's bounty?!

Huh, I have a bounty now? Wow! I wasn't expecting it to be this early in the timeline! I was expecting it to be at around the Water 7 arc! Why do I even have one-

Nezumi!

Of course, it's that rat! He must have done this as payback!

"Dragon Princess…?" I spoke out my title. Princess?! What the fuck did me beating him to a pulp means that?!

"Oh! Rein, you've got a bounty, too?!" Luffy stated, "Good for you!"

"Whoa, 15 million?! That's impressive!" Usopp stated in surprise.

"Ah~ A princess~ A perfect title for a beautiful person like you~" Sanji cooed.

"This is bad… really bad…" Nami muttered, "We can't afford to just loiter around East Blue any longer…"

"Alright! Then let's head straight to the Grand Line now!" Luffy declared, earning an aye-aye from the blonde cook and sniper.

"Hey! I see an island up ahead!" Zoro pointed out.

Everyone turned to look at the upcoming island, a familiar looking port approaching from the horizon. Wait, isn't that…?

"Oh, that island!" Nami stated with a smile, "That island is proof that we're close to the Grand Line. On that island, there's a famous town called 'Loguetown'. It's also known as the town of beginnings and the end. It's the birth place of the Pirate King, Gold Roger… as well as his execution spot."

"The town of the Pirate King's death, huh?" Luffy stated.

"Shall we go?" Nami asked.

Our captain nodded and we are put to work.

Loguetown, huh…? I'm back, and I'm part of the Straw Hats this time!

* * *

"WHOA! What a big town!" Luffy cheered as we set foot on the town. The place still as big and bustling as I remember, I think there are more people than when I last came here.

"So the Age of Piracy began here, huh?" Sanji stated.

"Seems that way." I nodded.

"Ok then! I'm going to go see the execution stand!" Luffy stated proudly.

"Seems like I can get some good ingredients here." Sanji stated.

"I'm going to go look for some equipment to buy." Usopp stated.

"I do have something I want to buy too, but…" Zoro said as Nami chimed in. "I'll happily lend you some money. At 300% interest, that is~!"

"Don't take the offer, Zoro!" I cried, "You'll regret it!"

"Huh? But I need the money so…"

I quickly rummaged through my rucksack and took out some thousand beri bills, "Here! 200 thousand beri! So wild! No need for interest!"

"Oh, thanks." He then walked off with money in hand. I can feel Nami's stare bearing into me but I stand firm.

"No taking advantage of crew members." I stated.

"Tch, I was so close too…"

"Well, I have some things I need to take care of so–"

"You're coming with me!" Nami stated as she pulls me along the street, "We're going shopping, and I'm going to get you some PROPER clothes whether you like it or not!"

God damn… Karma you son of a bitch…!

* * *

I am exhausted…

Nami dragged me all over town to find me a proper outfit. That includes most of her usual wardrobe, which means low-cut, revealing and fancy looking clothes. Hell, she made me wore a qipao with an extremely long slit! It runs all the way up my hip!

And then what I feared the most.

Lingerie.

In my embarrassment, I was forced to pick and match several undergarments for me. At least I know my own measurements now, a solid D cup and hips to match. I think Nami was boggled to find out, she keeps groping me to check!

After that insane rush, Nami was pretty much satisfied with my part of the shopping and let me be as she did her own.

And here I am, trying to find the address on the envelope Sen handed me. And yet again, I find myself lost. God damn it, twice in the same town?! Not letting myself become Zoro 2.0! Nope! Not today!

But after a few exhausting minutes, I decided to give in and ask for directions.

"Excuse me, do you know where this place is?" I asked a random passer-by, showing him the envelope.

"Hm… not too sure… but I know the street." He pointed down the road, "Turn left at the next crossroad and you'll be there."

"Thank you!" I sighed as I followed his instructions down the path.

A few minutes, I made it to the place, the store address that was on the envelope. With a sigh of relief, I enter the shop, only to for me took notice of a certain green hair and the dark bluish head next to him.

Oh no… this is THAT store?!

"Damn it, woman! You've gone and told him everything!" The store owner, Ippon Matsu I believe, shouted at Tashigi, "I should sue you for obstruction of business!"

"Wha-Obstruction of business?!" Tashigi cried, "I'm sorry, did I say something wrong? It's just… I've never seen such a fine sword before and…"

"You've come to pick up your Shigure, right?! Here! It's been polished already!" The owner tossed her the sword, she fumbles around with it before tripping and falling into the display, knocking all of them on top of her, "The heck are you falling over there for?! Put the swords back in their place and just leave!"

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Geez, she even worst that I last saw her… wait, crap! I have a bounty now, don't I?! Shit! If she recognize me, I'm going to have Smoker on my ass!

Okay, just calmly, quietly walk passed them… don't let them see you-

"Oh, Rein. You're here too?"

GAH! ZORO YOU IDIOT!

"Oh, a friend of yours?" Tashigi asked, "Wait, have I've seen you somewhere before…?"

"Huh? No! O-Of course not!" I answered, praying and hoping she doesn't recognize me at all.

"Hm…? Oh! Now I remember!"

AH! CRAP! SMOKER IS ON OUR ASSES NOW!

"You're that civilian from few months ago!"

…eh?

"You've been well!" She stated with a smile, "You looked better even!"

She… doesn't know…? Come to think of it, the wanted posters just arrived this morning so…

"Oh yes! I recognize you now!" I played along with it, "You're that officer that stripped me in public-"

"It was an accident!" She screamed, mostly at Zoro than anything else.

"Stripping people now?" Ippon scoffed, "Geez, you're a bigger klutz that I thought."

"N-No! It was purely a mistake, I swear!"

I just let her flustered a bit as I walked up to the owner, the man looking at me curiously, "Friend of that novice huh?" I nearly laughed at his assumption, "So, what can I get for you? A lighter sword would be advisable for woman starting up."

"Oh, no. I'm here to deliver a letter." I stated, showing him the letter in my hand.

He scoffed, taking the letter off my hands and opened it up. A few seconds of reading, his eyes widen shock, glancing at me with the corner of his eyes before slamming his hands on the counter, "Who are you to Sen?!"

"Huh? I-I'm his apprentice." Ex-apprentice, but the specifics isn't that important, right?

"Y-You?! S-S-Sen's…!" He is shaking like a leaf now, before running to the back of the shop in a hurry. A few seconds later with a little shouting, he came out with a crate the size of one katana, plonking it on the counter.

"What is this?"

"This… is what Sen left at the shop years ago." He explained sweat trickling down his brow, "He told me to keep this safe. And now… he wants me to give this to you."

"This? What is it?"

"Ah?! That sword is…!" I hear Tashigi stated in shock, "I remember seeing that in my book somewhere. Hang on a moment…"

I glanced at Ippon, the man realized which sword she is holding and froze in fear.

Ah… Sandai Kitetsu. I remember this scene.

"Ah! Here it is! Sandai Kitetsu!" She stated in surprise, "You should definitely buy this sword! Mister! Are you really selling this sword for only 50 000 beri?!"

"Y-Yeah…" Ippon muttered, sweat pouring down his eyebrow.

"That's amazing! This is another high-grade sword! It should normally be sold for at least a million beri!" Tashigi exclaimed, "It's predecessor, Nidai Kitetsu is one of the Great-Grade swords, while their original, Shodai Kitetsu, is one of the Supreme-Grade swords!"

"…No wait! I've changed my mind!" Ippon cried out terrified, "I can't sell that sword to you!"

"WHAT?! But why?!"

"It's cursed, right?" Zoro pointed out, the sword drawn in his hand.

"Huh? Y-You knew…?"

"No… just a feeling…"

Ippon shakily sighed a little, "…It's as you said. Beginning with the Shodai Kitetsu, the Kitetsu line of swords are renowned for their sharpness and quality, but they are all cursed blades!"

"Many famous swordsmen of the past that wielded a Kitetsu sword suffered tragic deaths. That's why you hardly see any swordsmen who dare use one these days. Even if they're unaware of the curse, they still end up dead just by possessing them."

"I wish I could get rid of that damn sword but…" Ippon sighed, "I'm afraid that I might end up cursed as well…"

"F-Forgive me! I had no idea it was such a terrifying sword!" Tashigi apologized.

"Hmph! That's why amateurs shouldn't act like their experts on swords!"

"Cursed, you say?" I see Zoro smirking, "I want it."

"W-Wait! You idiot! I just said it's not for sale!" Ippon cried, "I can't sell something that could kill you! It would be like I'm sending you to your grave!"

"Then how about this? Why don't we test which is stronger?" The pirate hunter smirked, "My luck? Or this sword's curse?"

"W-What…?"

"If I lose, that means I was never a man amount to anything special." Zoro spun the blade and tossed it into air. He breathes in and raised his arm out in the path of the falling sword.

"Stop! You'll lose your arm!" Ippon cried out, "H-Hey! You're his friend, right?! Talk some sense into him!"

"I can't." I tells him with a grim smile, "He can be really stubborn about this kind of things…"

One tense second later, Kitetsu landed onto the floor, stabbing right through the wood up to its guard. Zoro's arm remained uninjured and in one piece.

"I'll take it."

Ippon and Tashigi collapsed onto the floor from the tension as Zoro picked up the sword, "Hey, you, pick out one more sword for me." He tells Tashigi, who nodded numbly at his request.

I turned to the owner, who is still on the ground shaking, "So, um… mind opening this crate for me-"

"H-Hang on a moment!" He called out as he dashed to the back again. A few moments later, he came back up and placed the familiar sword on top of my crate.

"This is a black lacquered sword with an unraveled edge and wave-like edging named Yubashiri, one of the 50 Skillful-Grade swords! I can personally attest to its sharpness! My store may not be much, but this is the best sword I have!"

"Sorry, but I can't buy this." Zoro tells him, "I'm broke, remember?"

"Just take it! No money needed!" Ippon stated firmly, "Of course, I won't ask for money for the Sandai Kitetsu either. I apologized for trying to trick you earlier. It's been a long time since I've seen such a swordsman as you. As many in my trade would say, the sword choose its owner. So, I believe in your good luck and pray!"

"Oh, thanks." He picked up the last of his trio of swords, "I appreciate it."

"And you!" The owner looked at me, "Sorry for taking so long, but here it is. The sword that Sen left for you." He cuts the cloth tying the crate together and opened the lid.

Inside it on some straws is a single katana. It possessed a red sheathe, a dark guard in a shape of a coin with two slots on its sides with a red cloth tied to one, it's handle white with no wrappings and a bronze pommel.

I picked it up, feeling the weight which is a lighter than my previous one. Unsheathing the sword, I marvel at the blade it possesses, a silver-like blade with a smooth straight edging with a slight inward curve near the guard.

"The Raitou*." He explained, "A sword that is said to bring lightning with each strike. Don't know how true that is, but it's what people have said about this."

"R-Raitou?!" Tashigi flipped through her book to her last few pages, "H-Here! I knew I recognize that name! This is one of the Legendary-Grade swords!"

"Legendary?" Zoro and I looked at her confused. Weren't there like… Skillful-Grade, Great-Grade and Surpreme-Grade swords?

"They are the ones of legends!" She exclaimed, "In the world of swords, there exists swords that are only known through rumors and stories. They are an enigma and their forms not known to anyone! Only their names have been passed down, and Raitou is one such sword!"

Wait, so that means that I have a sword that surpassed Zoro's in pure quality alone?!

I'm… not sure how to feel about this…

"Oh… that's pretty impressive teacher you have, Rein." Zoro smirked.

"I-I'll say…"

"M-May I at least have a look?" Tashigi asked, her hands just shaking in excitement.

"…Sure, why not." I handed it to her, she gleefully examined it, feeling the entire thing in her hands.

Legendary-Grade, huh? Damn, Sen, you have some connections!

* * *

After letting Tashigi feel all over my blade, I and Zoro left the shop with our purchases firmly on our waists to find the rest of our crew. He of course paid me back in full since he didn't spent any of it, and we right now are making our way down the streets.

Right at the crossroads, we bump to the rest of the crew, Nami with two bags instead of one in the manga, Usopp helping Sanji hold the enormous elephant-looking fish.

"So, where is he?" Zoro asked.

"He said he wanted to check out the execution stand but…" Nami stated.

"Isn't the execution stand right here in the square?" Usopp pointed out.

"It is…" Sanji nodded.

"Hey, there's quite a lot of people in the square." I pointed out. They looked around and nodded in agreement, "Wonder what the event is?"

Wait… huge crowd around the square… the skies looked cloudy like rain is around the corner… I looked at the execution stand in the distance, seeing two figures on it. "Hey… is that…?"

The rest all followed my gaze, then we took notice the straw hat, "Why is he about to be executed?!"

I looked around trying to find a path as everyone got ready to dash in. Nami then suddenly called out, "Wait! Usopp, we need head to the Going Merry first!"

"Huh?! Why?!"

"Fine by me." Zoro stated as he, Sanji and me all rushed towards the crowd.

"God damn it, what is that idiot doing?!" Sanji muttered as he rushed through the crowd.

"Don't know, but we need to get him out of there!" Zoro chimed in.

"Agreed!" I nodded.

"I am the man who'll become King of the Pirates!-!"

Luffy voice echoed over the crowd, we just carried on forward with weapons ready for battle. That is, until I took notice of a certain green hair in the crowd. Hair styled like a rooster. Huh, so that's where Bartolomeo is.

Hm… maybe a little nudge won't hurt anyone-

"WAIT!"

Never mind, I'll deal with the situation at hand first.

We all charged straight in, swords drawn and ready. "We need to get him off the stand!" I stated.

"Sanji! Zoro! Rein!" Luffy cried, "Help me out here!"

"So you've come, Roronoa Zoro!" Buggy shouted, "But it seems you're a little too late…!"

"Holy shit, his nose is huge!" I suddenly shouted, Zoro and Sanji looking at me with blank faces, "What? You were all thinking it!"

"…In any case, we've got to bring that execution stand down!" Zoro pointed out.

"I know!" Sanji agreed.

"Take care of them, boys!"

"As you command, Lady Alvida!"

The large group of pirates with the buggy sigil all rushed towards us with swords drawn. With rather ease, we beat the crap out of all of them, but they are like ants, there way too many of them!

"GYAHAHAHA! Just watch carefully from there!" Buggy boasted, "Witness the last moments of your captain!"

"Like hell it is!" I shouted as I cuts through the lot of them as fast as I could. Damn it! The stand is so far away!

"Zoro! Sanji! Rein! Usopp! Nami!"

"Sorry." Luffy smiled as the cutlass blade came closer to his neck, "Looks like I'm dead."

"Don't you fucking dare, captain!" I screamed, my heart stopping as the blade comes down.

Then, as if it was the act of god itself, the sky broke. I shielded my eyes from blinding flash, as a huge thunderclap was heard along with it. When the flash came and gone, I lowered my arms to see the stand on fire. Blue fire.

Huh, guess the anime got that part right.

The stand cracked under its own weight, before falling onto the ground with a groaning thud. And from its rubble, a certain rubber pirate walked out and puts back on his hat.

"Hahahaha! Looks like I did survive!" Luffy laughed, "How lucky."

We just… stood there… completely stunned from what occurred a few seconds ago. I've seen this scene a countless times and witnessing this first hand… well, Bartolomeo's explanation may not be too far off.

"Hey… do you believe in god?" Sanji asked all of the sudden.

"Considering what just happened… Yeah, I do." I stated.

"Enough talking and let's leave town already." Zoro tells us, "We've got more trouble heading our way."

"Surround the town square! Corner in all the pirates!"

Ah, there's the Marines! I was wondering when they show up.

"Run for it!" Luffy shouted with a smile as we took off down the streets. I looked to side, noticing Bartolomeo bawling his eyes out. Well, there's that.

Let's get the heck out of dodge!

* * *

"Geez, the wind is getting worse." Zoro stated.

"Those guys are so persistent." Luffy pointed at the troop of Marines chasing us, "Should we just stop and fight them off?"

"Don't, there'll be no end to them. More importantly, Nami-san told us to return to the ship as fast as possible." Sanji explained.

"Good thing too. This storm seems to be a big one." I stated.

"Roronoa Zoro!"

Oh crap, here we go. Up in front of us stand Tashigi with her sword at her side, "To think that you were Roronoa Zoro! And a pirate at that! You were just toying with me all along!"

"You bastard! What did you do to that lady?!" Sanji shouted at the pirate hunter.

"Sanji, shut up! Not the time!" I shouted at him.

"Yes, Rein-chwan~!"

"And you! Dragon Princess Rein!" God why did they give me that title?! "You of all people… can't believe you were a pirate as well!"

"Never thought she was a marine…" Zoro stated.

"What?! I said she was an officer!"

"I shall take back that Wado Ichimonji! And Raitou as well!" She declared, drawing Shigure.

"…Go ahead and try." Zoro draws out Kitetsu and blocked her sword, "You guys go on ahead."

"Oh, okay." Luffy nodded as he pulls a protesting Sanji with him.

"Zoro! Don't hurt her too badly!" I called out as I ran after the two.

"No promises!"

"Don't you mock me!"

I ignore the fight at the back and keeps running forward. The rain is making it really hard to see what's in front, and the water is soaking my shirt and pants. This is the reason for my swimsuit outfit.

"Rein-chwan~ Want me to carry you~?"

"No, Sanji. Just shut up." I stated angrily.

"Ah~ Even the way you shoot me down is lovely~!"

Someone please, just shoot that guy once!

"Someone's up ahead!" Luffy pointed out, I looked forward and tries to see who. And then my heart stopped for just a second before starting to beat like a drum.

CRAP! It's Smoker!

"So you've come, Straw-Hat Luffy." He stated.

"Who're you?!" Luffy asked.

"The name's Smoker. I'm a captain from the Marine Headquarters." He winds back his fists, "And I won't let you to set sail from here!" He then sends two long smokes right at Luffy that grabbed him tight.

Okay, Luffy's rubber abilities are odd, but a Logia is just straight up wrong! The part where the smoke starts from his body is unsettling and my mind is boggling to made sense of what's happening.

"You freak of nature!" Sanji shouted as he kicked Smoker's head.

Of course, that did nothing as his head turns to smoke on impact, reforming into his face, "I don't have time for runts. White Blow!" He turns his other hand into smoke and punches Sanji to a pillar with his smoking hand.

"Sanji!" I cried. I quickly draws my sword and slashes right at him. I knew it was a useless move, but what can I do?! But then… the sword cuts flesh instead of smoke.

…Huh? What just happened…?

"Argh!" Smoker pulls back the smoke holding Luffy as he clutches his wounds. It wasn't that deep from what I can see. "H-Haki…? In the East Blue of all places…?"

No, I didn't. At least, I think I didn't… is it the sword? Is the blade made with Sea Stone perhaps…? Hooray for Legendary-Grade swords!

"White Snake!"

I was knocked out of my thoughts when a smoke arm grabbed me and lifts up into the air. And before I know it, I was thrown onto the pillar hard, knocking my head hard.

God damn it, what's with people and my head?!

"Rein! Why you…!" Luffy reels his fist back, "Gum-Gum Pistol!" He throws his punch right at him, Smoker just turns to smoke from the punch, which gathered and reforms behind my captain.

"Are you really worth 30 million?" He grabbed Luffy's head and drops his face onto the ground hard, "Looks like your luck's came to an end."

"I wonder about that."

At that voice, the world froze. There, standing behind Smoker with his hand on the Jutte, is the world's most dangerous man. The revolutionary himself. Monkey D. Dragon!

I didn't know what to feel, the sheer presence of him just being there is overwhelming. Like I'm looking at a demon.

"Y-You're…!"

"What?! Who's there?!" Luffy asked.

"The entire government after your head, you know." Smoker stated.

"The world awaits our answer…" Dragon stated.

I can't let this chance slip! If I can move Sabo a little, just give him a bit of his memory back…!

"Dragon!" I shouted, "Tell your man! The top hat! That Straw Hat misses him!"

"Top… hat…?"

Probably shouldn't have say that in front of a Marine Captain but…

Then the world moved, a huge gust of wind sweep us all off our feet, my world spun several times before crashing on my face. Ow… that wasn't fun…

"Luffy! Run for it or we'll be trapped on this island!" Zoro shouted as I saw his feet dashed passed me, "A huge ass storm is coming!"

"So this is what Nami-swan and Rein-chwan meant~!" Sanji cooed as he pulls me off my feet, literally as he had me in a princess carry.

OH HELL NO! Never again! Once is enough! "Get your hands off of me, you perverted cook!" I shouted pushing Sanji away.

"Ah~ Your harsh side is so cute~!"

"Don't call me cute!"

* * *

After a few minutes of running, and my pride being shattered once more, we are back on Going Merry and left Loguetown long behind us. Sailing in the storm is hard, the winds are strong, waves are rough, and the rain causes the visibility to plummet to near zero.

"Yahoo! The ship feels like it'll flip right over!" Luffy laughed.

"Don't joke about that! Never joked about that!" I screamed.

"You see that light over there?" Nami pointed out for us, there is indeed a lighthouse shining in the distance, "It's known as the Light of Guidance. The entrance to the Grand Line is just up ahead of that light. So, what shall we do?"

"D-Don't you guys think that entering the Grand Line in the midst of this storm is a bit…"

"So, we've reached the Grand Line, have we?" Sanji stated as he pulls out a barrel, "This calls for a celebration!"

"G-Guys?!" We ignored Usopp and continue with our celebration.

"To find the All-Blue." Sanji places his feet on the barrel.

"To become the Pirate King!" Luffy followed suit.

"To be the Greatest Swordsman…" Zoro puts his as well.

"To draw a map of the world!" Nami did too.

"T…T-To become a brave warrior of the seas!" Usopp hesitantly did it as well.

I looked down at the scene, the beginning of their journey, and start of the greatest adventure there ever known! And I'm going to part of it.

"To have the greatest adventure, EVER!" I shouted, following them.

And, with great coordination, we slams our feet down into the barrel smashing it.

"OFF TO THE GRAND LINE!"

With that line, our adventure begins!

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Yeah, finished this within a day. Man, I'm on a roll these few days! Glad to finish up most of the East Blue stories. And now, the Grand Line madness awaits!**

 ***Raitou: Lightning Sword**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	10. Ch 10:Arriving at the Grand Line

**Chapter 10: Arriving at the Grand Line.**

* * *

"The entrance to the Grand Line, is a mountain."

"A… mountain…?" Usopp stated confused.

It's been several hours since we went into this storm. The rain has been pouring like crazy with the waves so rough that it might really flip the Going Merry over, but Nami stated that the ship's course is fine and ask us to meet with her in the kitchen/dining hall.

"Exactly." She stated, "I had a hard time believing it myself when I looked at the map. But look!" She points at the mountain part of the map, "The Light of Guidance was directly pointing at Reverse Mountain located right here on the Red Line."

"Does that mean we have to crash through the mountain?" Zoro asked.

"No, there's a waterway right here."

"A waterway?! That's crazy!" Usopp pointed out, "Even if that waterway really is there, there's no way a ship could climb up a mountain!"

"But that's what the map says." She stated.

"That's right. As if what Nami-san says could ever be wrong!" Sanji stated proudly.

"Isn't that map the one you stole from Buggy? How dependable can it be?" Zoro pointed out, "In the first place, why do we even have to enter directly through the entrance anyways? Couldn't we just head directly south and still enter?"

"No we can't!" Luffy declared.

"Yeah, we can't." I added in, "There's a really good reason for that. You see-"

"It's much cooler to go in through the real entrance!"

"Not that!" Me and Nami knocked Luffy in the head. "Look, between the Grand Line and any of the Blues is stretch of water which-"

"Hey, guys! The storm suddenly stopped!"

I froze at Usopp exclamation. Uh oh… I remember this scene well… this isn't good at all!

We left the cabin, to reveal to us what I have feared is coming. The cloudless sky, the lack of wind or waves… Yup, we have entered it…

"The Calm Belt, fuck!" I swore, "This is bad! Really, really bad!"

"Calm Belt? What's that?" Luffy asked.

"Hey, look, even though the storm is going on over there, it's perfectly calm over here." Usopp pointed out.

"This is no time to be just standing about!" Nami cried, "Go grab the oars and start rowing as fast as you can! We have to return back to the storm!"

"As you wish, Nami-swan~!"

"What're you getting all worked up about?" Luffy asked, "This is a sailboat, not a rowboat."

"Why do you even WANT to go back into the storm anyway?" Usopp added.

"Just shut up and do as I say!" She screamed, me helping Sanji with the oars already. Those things are huge! Where were we keeping these?!

"But the weather is so nice here." Zoro stated.

"Fine, then I'll give you an explanation!" Nami shouted, "We drifted south! Exactly like you said!"

"Oh, so we're in the Grand Line now?"

"HECK NO!" I shouted, "We're in the worst place possible!"

"Rein is right! The Grand Line is surrounded by two ocean belts." Nami explained, "And those windless belts are known as the Calm Belt, which where we are right now!"

"Calm, eh? Sure seems that way." Zoro nodded, "So? What's your point?"

"The POINT is that-"

Nami was cut off when the entire boat shook. Ignoring the comments on earthquakes, I notices the rising and quickly took a look. It's like I have feared.

Sea Kings. Lots and lots of Sea Kings. Having lived in the Calm Belt for three months have me pretty much numbed my fear of Sea Kings, but this much in one place? No, my fear is back, and it got friends!

"This place is a den… For Sea Kings…" Nami softly moaned in despair.

A few tense moments later, the other Sea Kings swam back down into the waters leaving only the one under our boat. "A-Alright… As soon as this thing dives down into the sea, start rowing your arms off, got it?!" Zoro stated.

"Aye-aye…" We all nodded in agreement.

"A…A…"

Oh hell! This is going to be a rough ride-

"ACHOO!"

The Sea King sneezes and that tosses the Going Merry off his nose that sends the entire boat flipping around on its axis with us screaming and trying to remain on board.

"AGGHHH! A giant frog is coming this way!-!"

"Don't get thrown overboard!"

"Ah! Usopp just got thrown overboard!"

"USSOPPP!"

"I FUCKING HATE THE CALM BELT!"

* * *

A few agonizing and life-threatening minutes later, we finally made it back to the East Blue. Never in my life have I missed rain so much.

"Thank god, we're back in the storm…" Usopp groaned.

"That wasn't… fun at all." Luffy added in.

"Now, do you understand why we have to use the entrance?" Nami asked.

"Yeah… crystal clear…" Zoro groaned.

"At least now… we can head for the mountain and up the waterway…" I stated tiredly.

"What? You still think that is possible?" Zoro asked me.

"No, it is." I stated, "Consider this. Reverse Mountain is in the middle of all four Blues, where most of the currents are flowing to at high speeds-"

"Which drives the water up the waterway!" Nami concluded understandingly, "The currents all merged at the top and flow back down into the Grand Line! Since we're already riding the currents, all we have to worry about is steering properly. Reverse Mountain is a winter island, so the currents that hits its edge will travel down to the bottom of the sea."

"In layman terms, we missed, we ends up in Davy Jones Locker faster you can say 'Davy Jones Locker'." I added in.

"Ah… So it's a mystery mountain!"

"I shouldn't expected you to understand…" Nami groaned, "But Rein, nice on that theory! You're smarter than you look!"

"Hey! That's just rude!" I shouted. Although, I mostly know this due to her explaining the same thing in the manga.

"Never heard a ship going up a mountain before." Zoro stated.

"I've heard a bit."

"What? About the mountain?"

"No. But I have heard things about the Grand Line." Sanji stated, "Supposedly, half of the people die just trying to do in. Entering it is no easy task."

"But not for us." I added pointing at Nami, "For we have the best goddamn navigator ever!"

"Aw, you're making me blush~"

"Nami-swan~ You looks so beautiful with that blush~"

"I see the mystery mountain!"

Luffy's words has us looking at his direction, and I just… wow! Words failed me on the sheer intensity of the dividing mountains called the Red Line. The size is… what can I say, it's huge! No, gigantic! No, ginormous! No, I have literally no words to explain the absolute terrifying size of it.

It's just… a huge wall of red rock just spanning forever from all directions, it passed the clouds and probably beyond that!

"Get a good grip of the rudder so we won't get dragged under!" Luffy ordered.

"Leave it to us!" Usopp and Sanji stated proudly.

"Amazing…"

"I can't believe it." I agree with you Zoro, "The ocean is… really going up a mountain…"

The entrance to the Grand Line is… awe-inspiring. The impossible works of waters flowing upwards into the sky is… lack of words! And I know there are more things like that awaiting for us up that mountain!

"We're veering off-course!" Luffy pointed out, "Right! Little more to the right!"

"Right? Turning starboard!"

I looked closer at the entrance way, we slowly moving more to the right but…

SNAP!*

The cracking of wood pretty much have me freaking out as we are heading right towards one of the archways! "WE'RE GONNA CRASH!"

"Someone do something!" I screamed.

"Gum-Gum Balloon!" Luffy leaped off the side of the boat and inflates himself into a balloon, right as we are about the crash and acts like a buffer. A firm second later, the boat bounced back into the proper current and starts zooming along.

Wait, Luffy! "Luffy! Grab my hand!" I hear Zoro shout as I heard the sounds of elastic stretching and snapping back. Oh, he's alright!

"WE DID IT!" We all cheered happily as we all rode the current up the mountain. The winds blowing against my hair, the water splashing around us as we zips up defining gravity before it all collects up on the summit.

We remained in the air for only a moment but that moment, I saw the track. The stretch ocean far and wide, and I almost saw it. That island. THE island.

Raftel…

"I can see the Grand Line up ahead!" Luffy cheered.

We are coming for you!

* * *

"So this is the Grand Line!" Luffy laughed as we zooms down the mountain at break-neck speeds, "Full speed ahead!"

"Yeah! Adventure, here we come!" I laughed.

" **BBUUOOOOOHHHHHHHHH!-!** "

And then I paused. Wait a moment, I remember this. At the base of Reverse Mountain is…

"Hm? Did you guys hear something?" Zoro asked.

"Who cares?! Woohoo!"

"I wouldn't be surprised if that's just noise from the wind." Nami stated, "The terrain around here is quite odd, after all."

" **BUUUUUOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH!-!** "

"Um… I don't think that's the wind…" I stated, pointing at the shadow in front of us.

"Nami-san! There's a mountain up ahead!" Sanji stated.

"A mountain? That can't be!" She stated, "Once we passed the twin capes, we should reach open waters!"

"That's not a mountain…"

As we came out of the clouds, it's made prevalent what it is.

"It's a whale!-!" Nami shouted in terror.

Okay, Laboon himself is not that terrifying as the Red Line is, but… he is still pretty big. Not only that, the sounds he made are really echoing all around us.

"What should be do?!" Usopp cried.

"Should we fight?!" Luffy suggested.

"Like hell! Did you see the size of that thing?!" I screamed at him. Besides, Laboon has a reason for being there.

"But it's blocking our way!"

"We're too close to see anything! It looks like a giant wall!" Sanji stated, "Where are its eyes?!"

"Ah! That's right! Maybe the whale hasn't noticed us yet!" Nami stated.

"Well, if we don't do something, we're gonna crash into it!" Zoro shouted, "There's an open space up left! Turn portside!"

"Turn- but the rudder is broken!" Usopp cried.

"We gotta do something at least!" He stated leaping off to help him.

"Ah! I got an idea!" Luffy exclaimed as he leaped off and runs into the cannon room.

"AH! IT'S NO GOOD! WE'RE CRASHING!" I screamed in terror. I don't want to die like this! Not like this!

BANG*

I froze with fear as we slows down quite a bit, "T-The… C-Cannon…?" We all silently screamed as we halted with a thud against the whale, the sheep head breaking off and bounces right passed me. "I think I just lost a few years off my life…" I gasped.

We waited with tense breaths, Laboon doesn't seems to do anything. "N-Now's our chance! Run for it!" Zoro cried as he and the others pulls out the oars and we starts rowing for our lives.

"What's with that thing?! Did that cannon even hurt him?!" Usopp asked, "Maybe it's just really slow!"

"No one cares, just row!" I shouted as I helped pull the oars.

" **BUUUOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!** "

"ARGH! My ears!"

"ROW! Just row as fast as you can!" Zoro shouted over it, "We just got to get away from this thing for now!"

I nearly stopped when I saw Luffy standing there, eyes shadowed by his hat and fists clenched tight. Oh no… Please Luffy don't…

"Luffy, don't do anything-!"

"How dare you destroy my SPECIAL SEAT!" He throws his rubbery punch hitting Laboon's eye, much to our dismay.

"THAT IDIOT!"

As the result of that, Laboon's eye took notice of us. "Come at me, you bastard!" Luffy shouted.

"JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!" Usopp and Zoro kicks him down.

The next thing we knew, Laboon opens his mouth and the water starts rushing into the whale's enormous jaws. I think I saw Luffy fall off but I was too busy hugging the mast for dear life to care at the moment.

* * *

"What do you make of this?" Sanji asked.

"What do I make of this?" Zoro replied.

"Yeah, what's your explanation for this…? I could've sworn we were swallowed up by a whale but…"

I looked around in awe. The inside of Laboon stomach was weird, the stomach acid stinking up the place. The painted sky and clouds with the birds are a little much though… And I can see Crocus's small house-island as well.

"Are we just dreaming or something?" Usopp asked. "Yeah… _this_ gotta be a dream…"

"Then… what's with that house on that island…?" Nami asked, "Must be an illusion."

"And this?"

At that moment, a giant squid appears out of the green-tined waters.

"Nope. That's real."

"A GIANT SQUID!" Nami and Usopp screamed in terror as the rest of us got ready to fight. But then, three large harpoons shoots through the door from the house and stabs right through its gut and head, killing it instantly.

"Seems like there's a person here." Zoro stated.

"Let's _hope_ it's a person." Sanji added with a grim smile.

"Hopefully…" I nodded.

The squid is slowly pulled towards the house, a figure visible from the door.

"M-Maybe we should just open fire!" Usopp cried.

"Hang on, someone's coming out." Sanji stated.

From the house, someone stepped out and it's… a flower?

"It's a flower!" He exclaimed.

"A flower?!" Zoro cried.

"No wait, that's a person!" I stated, as Crocus walked out of his home. But you got admit, his hair does looks like flower petals.

"What's with him… that old man took out that giant squid with one blow!" Usopp stated fearfully. "…was he fishing… or did he do that to save us…?"

The old doctor reels in his catch, before glaring right at us.

And he glares…

And glares…

And glares…

And glares…

And glares…

Until he sat on the beach chair and opened up the paper in his hand.

"Say something, asshole!" Sanji shouted.

Crocus turned to face us with a blank look.

"I-I-If it's a fight you want, you've got one!" Usopp shouted from inside the cabin, "We have a cannon right here!"

He glares right at us again.

And he glares…

And glares…

And glares…

And glares…

And glares…

"…Don't, or someone might end up dead." He stated.

"Oh? And who might that be?" Sanji asked.

"…Me."

"YOU?!"

"Now, now, don't get so worked up…" Zoro tells him as he took his place, "Hey, old man! Would you might tell us where we are, and who are you?"

He glares right at us again.

And he glares…

And he glares…

And he glares…

And he glares…

"…If you want to ask someone something. It's proper manners to introduce yourself first." Crocus tells him.

"Huh? Oh, yeah… that's right. My mistake." Zoro apologised, "My name is Roronoa-"

"My name is Crocus. I'm the keeper of the Lighthouse of Twin Capes. I'm 71 years old, a Gemini and my blood type is AB."

"CAN I KILL HIM, RIGHT?!"

"Calm down, Zoro. Calm down." I tells him.

"You want to know where you are? You first trespass in my private one-man resort and then start mouthing me off with that attitude?!" Crocus stated angrily, "Does this place look like the stomach of a mouse?!"

"S-So… we really must have been swallowed up by that whale…" Usopp stated, "But this place doesn't look like a stomach of any animal…"

"W-What do we do?!" Nami moaned, "I don't want to be digested!"

And then he glares right at us!

And he glares…

And he glares…

And he glares…

And he glares…

"STOP DOING THAT ALREADY!" We all screamed at him.

"What? Can't appreciate a good gag?"

"THAT WAS A GAG?!"

"But it was pretty funny, you got admit…"

"Not now, Rein!"

"If you guys want to leave, the exit is right there." He points to the huge metal gate in the distance.

"WE CAN LEAVE?!"

"Why is there an exit inside a whale's stomach?" Nami asked, "And how is there a gate floating the sky!?"

"No wait… if you look carefully, the sky, the birds, even the clouds…" Usopp pointed out, "They are all just paintings! The insides of the whale's stomach has been painted over!"

"It's just a hobby of mine."

"What are you even doing in here anyway?!"

"Just leave him be." Zoro tells the sniper, "We've found the exit, so let's just get out of here."

And just as he said that, the boat starts shaking like in an earthquake, "So he's started again, has he…?"

"Ah! Look! That's no island!" Nami pointed out, "It's a ship! And iron one, at that!"

"So, this ocean is actually stomach acid?! If we stay here any longer, our ship is going to be dissolved!" Usopp cried, "Hey! What's going on?! Give us an explanation!"

"This whale has started bashing his head against the Red Line again…" Crocus stated grimly.

"What?!"

"Now that he mentions it… I remember that whale's forehead was covered in scars, and he was bellowing up towards the sky!" Nami stated.

"What does that mean?" Usopp asked.

"It means he's suffering…!" Nami stated, "He must be trying to kill this whale from the inside!"

"Hey! That's a nasty thing to say!" Crocus defends himself.

"Well, if the mystery's been solved, let's leave already." Zoro stated, "We'll be dissolved if we hang around any longer."

"That's right. I don't have anything against whaling and it's not like we're obligated to save this whale, either." Sanji stated, "So let's just get out of here."

"But with the whale rampaging like this, it's hard to even reach the exit!" I stated. I mean, I know Crocus isn't here to kill Laboon, but we can't just stay here!

"Well, if we don't hurry, our lives and Luffy's will be in danger." Zoro snapped, "He's not inside with us. I saw him escape outside the whale's mouth!"

"Ah! That old man just jumped in!" Usopp cried, we turned to see Crocus jumping into stomach acid, "What's he trying to do?! He's gonna get dissolved!"

"Doesn't concern us, right now!" Zoro stated, "Let's just row to the exit!"

"Agreed!" Sanji stated, "Everyone, grab an oar!"

And at the moment, the doors on top of the gate sprung open as three figures flies straight out, one with a straw hat. "L-Luffy…?" Zoro muttered.

"Guys! You're alright!" Luffy said happily, "In any case, help me!"

He and the other two people splashes into the acid below. "There're two other weirdos aside Luffy…!" Usopp stated in shock before exclaiming, "Hey! That old man's running away!"

"Forget about him. Saving Luffy comes first." Zoro stated.

I'm so going to regret what I'm going to do…

* * *

I regret everything.

Have you ever vomited on an empty stomach, and all you puke out is your stomach acid and the smell is pungent?

Well, diving into one is equally bad, and whales' stomach acid is extremely nasty.

When Luffy splashes into the acid, I decided to dive in to save him, turns out Sanji and Zoro have the same idea. After a few minutes of swimming and struggling, we manages to pull all three idiots out and onto the Going Merry.

And I wanted to take a shower, so bad right now. God, I think the acid is sticking to my hair…

There is at least one good news though. Laboon seems to have stopped banging his head on the Red Line now, considering the lack of shaking.

"The whale seems to have calmed down…" Nami stated. "Well? Just who exactly are you guys…?"

We are all now gathered around the two Baroque Works agents, one undercover princess included. They are obviously keeping them mouth shut to us, but they are definitely whispering between each other. We can actually hear them too.

I ponder on this, should I blow Vivi's cover right here right now and save us the time? Or let the plot flow as it is? On one side, if I blow her cover, she might make it harder to trust but we can possibly blow pass Whiskey Peak quickly, but then…

"I won't let you lay even a single finger on Laboon for as long as I live!"

Okay then, I'll think about it later. First thing first…

I saw Vivi and Mr. 9 ready their bazookas, I draw my sword at the same time and positions my blade just close to their necks, "Pull the trigger and I'll slit your throats." I tell them in the most terrifying voice I can muster. Considering Zoro's reaction, it wasn't that good.

"Y-You wouldn't dare…" Vivi tells me.

"Would I?" I give them a smirk.

"T-This is none of your b-business, pirate!" Mr. 9 tells me, "W-We were just hunting for our town!"

"Hey, that old man liked Laboon and will do anything to protect it." I stated as I scowled at them, "I liked his jokes, so I'll help him too."

"F-For such reasons-"

BONK*

Luffy then knocks the two of them out, "Don't know what's going on, but they are bad people, right?"

"Yeah, they are." I nodded as I sheathed my sword. That takes care of that…

"By the way Rein, that was the worst attempt of scaring someone I have ever seen." Zoro stated, "You don't sound remotely scary, and your scowl is a pout."

"Oh screw off, Zoro!"

"Rein-chwan! Your scary face has captured my heart again~!"

"And you shut up, you perverted-chef!"

* * *

After tying the two up (Sorry, Vivi, but in due time.), we made our way out of Laboon through the waterways. Crocus then tells us the story behind Laboon, I mostly ignored it as it's a story I know by heart. I wanted to tell them that Brook is still alive and is still trying to keep his promise but…

There's no way they would believe me…

Sorry, Brook, guess you have to wait.

That leaves me with the option for Vivi. I could tell blow the cover of Baroque Works, but after that what? We would destroy Whiskey Peak easily, but we then we have to deal with Ms. Valentine and Mr. 5. Not to mention the Unluckies…

Maybe I can get Usopp to shoot them out of the sky before they can inform Crocodile?

"Alright! We're out! I can see the real sky at last!" Luffy cheered, bringing me out of my thoughts. The sudden breeze filled my nostrils with a familiar salty air that got rid of the acid smell all together. Ah~! Salty sea breeze, how I missed you!

"What should we do with these two?" Usopp asked.

"Just throw them overboard." Nami tells us, Zoro acknowledging by untying them and tossing them into the sea in one smooth motion.

"So…who are you guys again?" Luffy asked them.

"Shut up! It's none of your business!" Viv cried.

"No wait, Ms. Wednesday." Mr. 9 tells her, "Perhaps it _is_ their business. After all, they are _pirates_."

"True indeed, Mr. 9" She agreed, "Our organization may have some use for you. Prepare yourselves!"

"Then we bid you good day until next time, hillbilly pirates!"

"And heed this, Crocus! That whale shall be ours for the taking soon enough!"

The two then proceeds to swim away as fast as possible, their figures soon disappearing into a series of splashes in the distance.

"So Ms. Wednesday is her name? What a beautiful enigma, she is~" Sanji cooed.

"Huh? Someone dropped this?" Luffy stated holding up a-

"Yoink!"

"Hey!" I quickly snatched the Log Pose from his hand.

"This looks too fragile to be in your hands, captain." I stated with a smirk. Let's try to keep this intact this time.

"…Yeah, that's true." He laughed.

"Are you sure about just letting them go?" Nami asked, "They'll be sure to come back for the whale again, you know."

"Even if I didn't let them go, there'll be some other rogues who'll come to take their places." Crocus stated with a sigh.

"But to think, this whale has been waiting here for 50 years…" Zoro stated, "Does it still believe its friends will really returned…?"

"Those pirates sure are taking their time…" Luffy said.

"You idiot, this is the Grand Line." Sanji tells him, "They promised they'd be back for 2-3 years, yet they are still not back in 50… the answer is obvious. They're long dead by now. They won't come back no matter how long that whale waits."

"Why do you have to go and say such cold things?!" Usopp cried, "You can't say that for sure! They still might come back! Can't you appreciate such a moving story about a whale who still believe in his friends' promise…?"

"The truth is far more cruel, however."

We turned to Crocus on his island, I didn't as I struggles to keep my mouth close.

"Those fellows left already." He tells us, "Left the Grand Line all together. I heard it from a reliable source."

"W-What?!"

"S-So they just left the whale behind?!" Nami cried, "But that would mean they left through the Calm Belt!"

"Yes… That is why I don't know whether they survived or not." He stated, "But even if they did survive, they would never dare to return here again. A place where the seasons, climates, currents, and winds could not be any more chaotic."

"A place where common sense fails to uphold… that place is this sea, the Grand Line, and it rules with fear over the faint-hearted."

"So basically, those cowards were more concerned about their lives than keeping a promise, and thus left the Grand Line to never return here again." Sanji stated as he puts out his cigarette.

"S-So they just left the whale behind?!" Usopp cried angrily, "Even though this whale never doubted them, and has been waiting here for over 50 years?! How can they be so cruel?!"

I wanted to scream, to shout out the truth. That Laboon has someone to wait for, that the pirate crew never abandoned him, that the reason it took so long is…

"If that's the case, then why haven't you tried telling the whale the truth?" Nami asked, "This whale can understand human words, right?"

"I have." Crocus sighed, "I've told him the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. But he refuses to listen. Ever since then, Laboon has been bellowing at Reverse Mountain and bashing his head against the Red Line, as if trying stubbornly assert that his friends are beyond that wall, and that they'll return someday…"

"I've tried telling the truth many times since then but he refuses to listen, refuses to accept the truth."

"What a whale… he keeps on waiting even after being betrayed…" Sanji stated as he lit a new cigarette.

"Even though there's no point in waiting anymore…" Usopp added.

"That's exactly it. It's because he'll lose all reason." Crocus stated with a tired huff, "He refuses to listen. He's afraid of losing the meaning behind all his waiting above all else. This whale's home is back in the West Blue, which is located on the other side of the Red Line. It's too late for him to go back. That's why his only hope are the very friends he came along in the first place."

I feel like I'm forgetting something… it's on the back of my mind but I can't quite remember…

"But you know, as much as I feel sorry for this whale and all, you've also been betrayed by them if you think about it." Sanji stated, "So why don't you just leave the whale be?"

"Look at the scars on its head." He tells him, "If he continues to recklessly bash his head on the wall, he'll definitely die. We had an odd relationship but he is still my companion for the past 50 years. I can't just stand by and watch him die-"

"UUUOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!"

We were then caught by surprise when Luffy suddenly ran up Laboon with something in his hand-wait a damn minute! Is that the-?!

"GUM-GUM FLOWER ARRANGEMENT!" Luffy shouted as he plunged our main mast onto Laboon's head.

"Hey… is that the mast?"

"Yeah, I think it's our ship's…"

"Yup, it's our main mast alright…"

"That it is…"

" **BUUUUOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH!** "

"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT IDIOT DOING?!" We all screamed as Usopp silently sobbed for our wrecked ship. I can't believe I forgotten about this one stupid stunt he's about to pull! I'm such an idiot!

Laboon struggles about with Luffy on his head, before smashing him and the mast onto the ground hard, the waters around him roughing pushing our boat around as we tries to hold on.

"H-Hey kid!" Crocus cried.

"Don't worry!" Nami tells him, "He won't die from something like that!"

We watched as Luffy and Laboon goes back and forth, punching and slamming against each other. And just as Laboon got ready to strike…

"IT'S A TIE!"

The whale immediately stopped, Luffy grinning at him, "I'm pretty tough, huh? Our fight has yet to settle, so we must fight each other again! Your old friends may be dead, but I'm your new RIVAL! Once my crew sails around the Grand Line, we'll be sure to come back to see you again."

"And then we'll duke it out again!"

I saw Laboon's eyes well up in tears, before he lets out a loud bellow as tears flow down his face. I laughed a little, wiping a tear from my eyes, "That idiot goes too far sometimes…"

"Yup, he does." Nami stated with a teary smile.

"But that's Luffy for you." Zoro chuckles.

"Never mind that! What about our ship?!" Usopp cried, "He ripped the main mast right off!" He points at the splintered part of our broken mast.

"You could always fix it back." Sanji stated.

"I'm not a shipwright!" He screamed.

"Hey, Usopp! Can have some of your paint?"

"Huh? For what?"

* * *

Okay, he has the worst art-sense I have ever seen. I mean, even a fucking _toddler_ can draw better than that!

By what I mean by that is that Luffy decided to 'draw' our Jolly Roger onto Laboon's head to keep him from bashing into the Red Line. Well, all well that ends well, I guess…

Now, we are left with our own little activities to do while Nami chart our next course. Usopp is busy fixing the mast, as best as he could. Sanji is cooking that elephant fish he bought in Loguetown. Zoro is sleeping, as usual. And me?

I'm actually just admiring the open water from the top of the lighthouse. It gave me some time to think about our next few destinations.

First of all is Whiskey Peak. Since I failed to change anything here, it would probably proceed along with plot. That means Zoro will fight a bunch of bounty hunters, Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine will show up and bust Vivi's cover and then we'll meet… Nico Robin…

Okay, for that, what do I want to change…? Do I even need to change anything? I could try and prevent Igaram's supposed death, but that would let him to be chased down all the way to Alabasta…And he is needed to help stop the civil war by saving the child.

But what if I try and turn the whole island against Crocodile…? Would that be possible? I could shouted his name the very moment we land but…

"AAAHHHHHH!"

Ah, Nami's freak out time. Guess it's time to show her the Log Pose.

I walked down the stairs, arrived just as Crocus has done explaining the whole magnetic field island thing. "To navigate through the Grand Line, you'll need a Log Pose." He tells us.

"A log pose?" Nami asked, "Never heard of it."

"It's a special type of compass that records the magnetic field."

"So it's a weird-looking compass?" Luffy stated with a large piece of elephant tuna in his mouth. I walked up to him before taking a large piece from the plate and bites into it. Huh, it's like eating a large fishy chicken beef steak. Yes, it is as I described.

"Well, it's rather oddly shaped as well. Without a Log Pose, it'd be impossible to navigate on this ocean. Of course, it would hard to obtain one outside the Grand Line." He nodded.

"Crap! We don't one at all!" Nami cried, "I should have gathered more information!"

"D-Does that mean we're stuck here?!" Usopp cried.

"If it's a weird looking compass, Rein has one."

They all turned to look at me, I produced the Log Pose for them to see, strapped around my wrist for safe-keeping, "Those two weirdos dropped it." I stated tearing in a piece of the elephant fish, "Luffy found it and I took it to prevent him from breaking it."

"Good call." Zoro stated, I gave him a thumbs-up.

"So this is a Log Pose…" Nami stated as she studied it, "There's no markings on it or anything…"

"The various islands across the Grand Line all have their own unique magnetic fields surrounding them." Crocus explained, "So in short, you'll have to record the magnetic field interaction between any two islands before you can progress on to the next island."

"In this ocean where one can't use any normal means of path-finding, this Log Pose represents the only reliable way for one to find his way. From this mountain, you'll choose one out of seven magnetic fields to record, which'll lead you to different islands."

"But no matter which island you start with, the paths all converge into one eventually. At the last island on this whole stretch of sea…"

"Raftel. The final island on the Grand Line. The only island whose existence is confirmed only by the Pirate King and his crew. The Island of Legends."

"T-Then, does that mean One Piece is on that island?!" Usopp asked excitedly.

"Who knows?" Crocus shrugged, "Although that is the most likely theory, no one ever reached there to confirm it."

"Well, we'll know when we get there." Luffy smirked as he bit down on his bone. I looked down at the empty plate with equal awe and terror. He digested the bones too?!

"Log Pose, huh? Alright! Rein, hand it over." Nami tells me, "I'll take it from here."

"Oh sure." I stated as I tossed the compass to her-

"THAT FOOD WAS FOR NAMI-SAN TO ENJOY!"

Then Sanji kicked Luffy that sends him flying into it, smashing it beyond recognition. I think I hear a few veins popping as she looked at the blonde cook with an extremely sweetly smile, "Sanji-kun…?"

"Yes, Nami-swan?"

"YOU AND LUFFY COOL YOUR HEADS DOWN IN THE SEA!" She screamed as she kicks the both of them into the waters below.

"Ah… shouldn't have tossed it…" I nervously laughed, "Sorry."

"Wasn't that compass like super-duper important?!" Usopp cried.

"What do we do, Crocus?!" Nami cried, "Our precious Log Pose is…!"

"Don't worry." Crocus smiled, "I've a spare with me. Consider it a gift for helping Laboon."

"Really?! Thank you!" She stated happily.

"But I'm surprised." He added, "I thought that you people would have known of all of these before coming here."

"Ah well, circumstances…"

"No I mean, with her on your crew I mean." He pointed at me, everyone looked at me with curious eyes. Huh? Me?

"Rein? What about her?" Usopp asked.

"A friend of mine told me about her." He stated, I flinched a little, "Something about… knowing what the Straw Hat Pirates are up to in the future."

"Huh? What does that mean?" The sniper asked.

Why do I get the feeling that he knows what I think he knows.

"Exactly what I said." Crocus explained, "He told me that she came from another world and knows pretty much everything about Straw Hat Pirates, from their pasts, how they met, their reasons for joining, future bounties, adventures, etc."

Everyone all turned towards me, Nami and Usopp looked at me with wide shocked eyes. …Oh wait, I didn't say anything, did I…

"You... didn't tell them...?"

"It was hectic, alright!" I tell him, "It slipped my mind!"

"Oh... sorry!" Crocus nervously laughed.

"…I've heard some weird lies, but that takes the cake for me!" Usopp laughed, "I mean, another world?! If you want to lie, at least make it realistic!"

"Actually, that may make sense…" Nami stated, much of the sniper and mine surprise, "Back on Cocoyashi, Nojiko asked me if I have told anyone about my past, saying that Rein knows about what Arlong did despite not being told that."

"She do?! But she left before Nojiko told us!" Usopp stated, "Wait so… she knows our secret pasts…?" He turned to faced me with a huff, "T-Then prove it! Tell me something that only I would know!"

Something that only Usopp would know… hm… ah I know!

"Your first lie is that your father came back to bring you and your sickly mother out to sea with him." From his reaction, I guess I convinced him.

"So, another world…?" Usopp muttered.

"Yup." I nodded.

"How did you even get here?!" Nami asked in shock, "Can you even get back?!"

"I don't know." I shrugged, "It was a blur but I was dead, then I suddenly ended up on an island in the East Blue. I don't know if I can even get back."

"Why did you tell us?" Usopp asked again, "I thought we are crew mates!"

"...To be honest... it slipped my mind." I stated, feeling a little guilty about it. I honestly didn't think to tell any of the crew at all. I guess... I didn't really trust them with this kind of knowledge. "I'm sorry for not telling you, I really am... I guess I don't really trust you guys at all..."

"...I guess I can't really blame you..." Nami stated, "You're the latest member, so we haven't really been all together too much."

I sighed in relief, glad that they aren't going to be mad about this. But then Nami walked up to me with what seems to be beris in her eyes, "So! How much treasure are we going to find on the Grand Line?! How rich are we going to be?!"

"W-Wha-?!"

"Oh! Oh! I want to know!" Usopp stated raising his hand up excitedly, "Did I ever did any grand feats worthy of a Brave Warrior of the Seas?! Did I?!"

"U-Um…"

"Excuse me!" A familiar voice called out as two familiar people climbed up the ladder with Sanji and Luffy. "We have a request."

Ah, here we go… the start towards Whiskey Peak…

* * *

"Whiskey Peak? What's that?" Luffy asked.

"It's… the name of our town." Mr. 9 stated.

"So, you want us to take you there because you lost your ship?" Nami asked, "Don't you think that's asking a bit too much, Mr. 9? Especially considering you tried to kill the whale and all."

"Just who are you guys anyways?" Usopp asked.

"I'm a king."

"Don't lie!" I stated angrily as I punted him in the head with my fist.

"We cannot say! But please! Please take us back to our town and we swear we'll return the favour!" Mr. 9 begged.

"We'd really rather not keep things hush-hush about everything, but 'mystery' is our organization's motto." Vivi tells us, "And so we absolutely cannot tell you anything more. Please, help us out from the kindness of your hearts…!"

Damn, Vivi is a really, and I mean REALLY, good actor. No wonder no one except Robin found out about her…

"Don't listen to them. They're nothing but trouble." Crocus tells us.

"Well… we accidentally broke our Log Pose so…" Nami stated showing them the broken compass.

"WHAT?! YOU BROKE IT?!"

"How dare you try and take advantage of our misfortune when you're just as misfortunate as us?!"

"Oh right! I forgot to mention that Crocus here gave us another one!"

"…We beseech your kindness, madam…" The two pretty much kowtowed to her from that.

"You want to help them out, captain?" I asked him.

"Sure. They can come along with they want." Luffy stated.

"Oi, Luffy, are you sure about this?" Usopp asked worriedly, "Aren't they a little too suspicious for our sake?"

"I, for one, don't mind either way~!" Sanji cooed.

Of course, he doesn't…

After a brief re-supplying and briefing along with a few minutes of waiting, our log is set for Whiskey Peak.

"You sure about this, kid?" Crocus asked Luffy as we prep ourselves for the journey ahead, "Picking Whiskey Peak all just because of these ruffians? The only place you can choose which route to take is from here, you know."

"It's fine." Luffy tells him, "If I don't like the route, I can always sail once around and choose a different route."

"Ah, I see…"

"Bye then, old man!"

"Thanks for the Log Pose!" Nami called out.

"See you!"

Our sails unfurled as we set sail into the Grand Line, "We're going now, whale!" Luffy called out, Laboon bellowing out what I presume to be a goodbye.

I clenched my fists as I looked towards the horizon. The start of our adventure commences!

I can't hardly wait!

* * *

 _To be continued…_

 **Okay! Finished with this! Finally, the Grand Line saga shall begin! And now Nami and Usopp knows about Rein's true origins!**

 **Although I've got to admit, how I did it is a little shoe-in but I want them to know about her little secret as early in the Grand Line as possible. And besides, what kind of friend Sen would be to not tell Crocus or any known member of the Roger Pirates about his special apprentice?**

 **So yeah! After this is the Whiskey Peaks arc! I can't wait for that!**

 ***Edit* I added in a few dialogues according to some people's disagreement with how I handed the reveal. Hope it is enough.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	11. Ch 11:What does Baroque Works even mean?

**Chapter 11: What does Baroque Works even mean?**

* * *

I can't believe I've forgotten how crazy the Grand Line can be in terms of weather. Right off the bat, a few hours of sailing from the Twin Capes we ran into a winter storm. I stayed indoors with Nami in her winter coat with matching scarf and earmuffs while I just wore a woolly hoodie coat over my current attire.

"Jeez, how can those two be so lively when it's so cold out?" Nami wonders.

"Well, mentally they are kids after all." I tells her.

"Nami-san~! How much longer shall I continue my snow shovelling of love~?" Sanji called out.

"Until it stops snowing, Sanji." She replied.

"Yes ma'am~!"

"I don't think the snow is going to end anytime soon, Nami." I tells her, staring at the gloomy winter clouds. Ignoring the background bickering, I stared at the lightning that streaks across the clouds. Damn, Oda really knows how to make an interesting sea. Lightning in a winter storm?!

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

"GAH! What now, Nami?!" I asked rubbing my ringing ears as I saw Nami ran out of the cabin.

"Turn the ship around 180 degrees! Hurry!" She cried out.

"180 degrees?! Why're we turning back?!" Usopp asked.

"Did you forget something?" Luffy chimed in.

"No! The SHIP turned itself around and is now heading directly away from our destination!" Nami cried, "I only took my eyes off of the Log Pose for a second and the waves are so calm, too…!"

"Looks like you've been played by the waves." Vivi laughed, "Are you really a navigator?"

"Grr…!"

"This is the kind of ocean the Grand Line is. The winds, the skies, waves, even the clouds. You can't trust any of them. The only thing you can trust is the Log Pose and the direction it points. You understand?"

"Stop acting all high and mighty and start helping out!" Nami shouted as she kicks the two out of the cabin, "You too, Rein!"

"Helping!" I said as I ran out discarding my coat.

"Catch the wind from the right side! We'll use it to turn the ship around 180 degrees to the left! Usopp, take the jib sail! Sanji, take the rudder!"

"Leave it to me, Nami-san!"

"Ah! The winds changed!" I called out just as I took the ropes. It's not cold anymore, almost warm…

"That can't be!"

"Ah, the first breeze of spring…" The two BW agents sighed in relief.

"WHAT?!"

"Wake up, Zoro!" I screamed at the sleeping swordsman. How can he sleep through all of that?!

"Hey, I see a dolphin over there! Let's check it out!"

"You just stay quiet!"

"The waves are getting higher!"

"And now there's a fog!"

"Iceberg spotted at 10 o'clock!"

"AH! It's coming closer by the second! And I think I saw seals drinking coffee on it!"

"What is wrong with this ocean?!"

* * *

After a several gruelling minutes, you heard me right: MINUTES, the weather finally calmed down by a lot, and I mean by a lot. Icebergs, hail the size of our head, a fucking waterspout that just came out of nowhere, it was nuts! We never had any time to rest at all!

"Aaaahhhhhh~! That was a great nap!"

Except, of course, of Mr. Marimo over here…

"Hey, come on now. I know the weather's nice and all, but don't you think you're all being a bit too lax about this?" He asked, "Are we even going in the right direction?"

He can say that when almost everyone is on the ship freaking exhausted and spent and he just awoke from a freaking NAP! If I have any strength right now, I'm going to kill that son of a bitch…

"Hm? And why are you two on our ship?"

"You noticed it, NOW?!"

"We're heading towards their town right now." Luffy tells him.

"What, so we're giving them a ride?" Zoro asked, "It's not like we're obligated to or anything."

"I know."

"Hm… there's something sinister about your faces…" He smirked as he kneeled down in front of them, "What did you say your names were again?"

"M-Mr. 9…"

"And M-Ms.… Wednesday…"

"Ah, right. Something about those names have been bugging me even since I heard them…" He stated with a venomous smirk, "I feel like I've heard them somewhere before… or not… Well, in any case-"

*BONK*

"GAK!"

"Did you have a nice NAP?!" Nami growled as she knocked him with her fist, "You wouldn't wake up no matter how hard we tried…"

"Nami, allow me." I tells her, walking up to him cracking my knuckles.

"…Huh?"

And then I released all my pent up rage against him, all my frustrations from Arlong Park all burst out into a fury of punches on his noggin. After a few satisfying seconds, I dusted my hands off from a job well-done, leaving the moss-head with hundreds of goose-eggs on his head.

"Okay, I'm good." I smiled with a tired sigh, the adrenaline from my anger dissipates along with it.

"Remind to never piss up Rein, or Nami…" I hear Usopp whispered.

"Agreed." Luffy agreeing.

"Anyways! With that out of the way, don't let your guards down!" Nami yelled to everyone, "You can never expect what might happen out here! I finally understand how terrifying this ocean truly is, as well as why they called it the 'Grand Line'!"

"It's because ALL of my navigation skills has failed to work!"

"…Uh… are we going to be fine like that…?" Usopp asked worriedly.

"We'll be fine!" She tells him, "Things will work out one way or the other. And as proof of that, look!" We turned to where she's pointing, an island is seen over on the horizon, "The first leg of our journey is over!"

"IT'S AN ISLAND!" Luffy cheered, "I SEE GIANT CACTI!"

Indeed he does. The entire Whiskey Peak is a group of large round cactuses on the single island. The island is still pretty foggy but much of we can still see. Seeing this had my mind starting to turn out possible outcomes for this.

I could follow the plot, maybe pretend to be asleep before surprising them. Or I can…

"Now then, we ask you please drop us off here!" The two BW agents leaped onto the boat's railings, "Thank you for taking us here, my honeys! If fate wills it, then let us meet again!"

"Bye-bye, babies!"

The two of them smirked with a certain glint in their eyes before leaping into the waters and swimming away.

"T-They're gone…" Nami stated, "Just what is up with those two?"

"Forget about them! Prepare to land!" Luffy cheered.

"There's a river up ahead." Zoro stated, "Looks like we can dock inland."

"T-There wouldn't be any monsters on this island now, right…?" Usopp asked.

"Considering this place is the Grand Line, I'd say there is a good possibility." Sanji stated.

"Well, we can always run away if that's the case." Our captain states so.

"Wait just a second." Nami tells them, "Don't forget that we have to stay on this island for a certain amount of time."

"Why?"

"This Log Pose has to record this island's magnetic field before we can move on to the next island!" She explained, "And the recording time varies for each island. There are some islands that take only a few hours to record, while some take even a few days."

"T-Then, even if we come to a horrible monster island we want to run away from, it's possible that we'll have to stay on it for several days?!" The sniper cried.

"That's right."

"We'll worry about it when it happens." Luffy laughed, "So let's go already! It's weird not to go in when there's a river in front waiting for us!"

"For you, maybe…" Nami sighed.

"No, what he says is right." Zoro stated, "There's no use worrying about it so let's just go."

"I'll protect you both, Nami-san, Rein-chan~!" Sanji boasted.

"W-Wait!" Usopp cried, "Before we go in, I have to be sure!" He then turns to me, "Rein, you know what's in the island ahead, right? Is it dangerous?!"

Everyone that isn't Usopp or Nami looked at him confused, "Why are you asking Rein for this?" Zoro asked, "It's her first time here too."

"Ah, right! With all that hassle, we forgotten to tell you guys!" Nami realized, the same with me. Yeah, with the crazy weather and trying to keep our route steady, I've forgotten to tell the rest of the crew.

"Forgotten what?" Sanji asked.

"Well…" I thought for a moment, "…I'm a human from another world that have read a book about the Straw Hat Pirate's adventures and knows pretty much what there is to know about everyone here and future crewmates."

"…What?" Zoro blinked.

"Oh! I get it!" Luffy stated bouncing up and down, "You're a mystery person from a mystery world that read a mystery book about our adventures!"

"…Yeah, close enough." I shrugged.

"No, it's not!" Nami cried, "Listen, I know this is weird but she is telling the truth. She knows our pasts and future! She can prove it too! Can you, Rein?"

"Sure, I can." I nodded, before pointing at Zoro, "Your dream is the same as your childhood friend, Kuina, which is also where your Wado Ichimonji came from."

"Huh?! H-How do you…?"

"And Sanji…" I looked at him dead in the eye, "…66. That's all I'm gonna say."

I saw Sanji freeze at the mention of that number, before taking a big huff from his cigarette and blowing a huge puff of smoke, "Okay, I believe you. There's no way you could have known otherwise."

"…I hate to admit it, but the dumb cook is right." Zoro groaned, "So… you know about my…"

"…Yes, I do." I smiled, "You were quite a cute child back then."

"Oh god, this is the worst…" He groaned tiredly.

"Okay, okay, that's enough of convincing!" Usopp cried, "I haven't gotten my answer! Is this island safe or not?!"

"Hm… compared to the others we're going to go to… yeah, we're safe." I tell them, "Although that depends on the definition of 'safe'."

"…Why does that not fill me with confidence…?" The sniper moaned.

"Look, we go to crazy places further down the road, or sea in this case, but this town isn't the worst. Hell, I call this place a proper start to our adventure." I explained, "Also, we're going to need to collect someone here as well."

"Really? Who?" Nami asked.

"…Let's keep that under wraps until the time is right." I tell them, "I don't want to alter what I know _too_ much. But I can tell you guys one thing." I looked at Zoro, "The town we're going to, is a town of bounty hunters."

"BOUNTY HUNTERS?!"

Zoro blinked, as the rest of them except for Luffy gasped or shouted in shock.

"Wait, so the two from before…" Nami stated, "They too are bounty hunters?"

"Yup, every citizens, man, woman and child are one." I stated, getting a slight grim face from Usopp, "But they aren't a real threat, not on their own at least. They have an advantage in numbers, but compared to us, they are nothing."

"But still, that's a lot of bounty hunters…" Sanji stated.

"Yeah, which is why they would try to ambush us." I explained, "Take us off guard. That island," I pointed at Whiskey Peak, "Is a trap in of itself. And by entering will trigger it."

"I-I suddenly developed a can't-enter-island-disease…" Usopp stuttered.

"Well, now we know, then everyone be on high alert." Zoro tells them, "Whatever trap they sprung, we'll be ready for it."

"No… really, I can't…"

* * *

"Talk about a warm welcome!" Usopp laughed blowing kisses into the crowd of cheering townsmen, "What are you talking about, Rein? This place loved pirates! I bet you just remember it wrong!"

"…Fake?" Nami whispers to me.

"Fake…" I sighed as silently as I could to not bring any attention to me.

As soon as we entered the island via the river, the whole cover is triggered as the frontier agents of BW all gathered out to 'warmly' welcome us to their town. And of course, Usopp, Sanji and Usopp fell for it hook, line and sinker…

"So I guess they make us pass out before killing us…?" She asked.

"Yup. That's how it's supposed to be done." I stated.

"And… how did we escape this in that book of yours…?"

"Hm… all I can say is, don't get drugged, and trust Zoro." I stated, "Oh! And try to rob this place blind if you could."

"That's something I loved to hear!" She giggled.

After that, we alighted from the Going Merry to be greeted by the undercover royal guard/butler, Igaram. "Welg-AHEM! Maa, maa, maa~! Welcome. My name is Igarappoi You may be a little shocked at this welcome, but this is Whiskey Peak, the town of liquor and music. Hospitality is our middle name."

"If it is fine liquor you want, we have an ocean's worth. So please, I cordially invite you to our banquet, and hope that you may entread-AHEM! Maa, maa, maa~! Entreat us with tales of your wonderful adventures."

"GLADLY!" Luffy, Usopp and Sanji all cheered to that.

I want to slap my head for this. I've even warned them about this and yet they get fooled by them easily. As Nami asked Igaram about how long it takes for the Log Pose to record, I've came up with the idea on how I can deal with this.

"Sorry, but I can decline." I tells them, "I have to write in our logbook about our latest endeavours, and I want to finish it as soon as I can."

"Come on, Rein! You can do that later!" Luffy stated happily.

"Yeah! Don't be a party pooper!" Usopp agreed.

"Sorry, but I want to deal with it before I forget about the whole thing…"

"Well, if that's what she wants, then leave her be." Zoro stated.

"Aw…" The three groaned.

"Don't worry. Just bring me back some food from the banquet." I tell them.

"Okay, see you later then!" They tells me as they went in with the 'townspeople'. I stretched a little before climbing back onto Merry.

"Alright, where did I left it at…?"

* * *

As the moon starts to rise into the night sky, I have manages to write down everything on the logbook. From what happened in the Calm Belt, going up Reverse Mountain, Laboon and the Log Pose explanation, all written down as best as I could. I've include a few illustrations between entries for future references down the line.

Now, with that out of the way, I've on stand-by in the cabin with the lights off. In my hand is a bottle of sparkling lime water which I assumed Sanji got from Loguetown which is half empty from my drinking. I sat there looking at the door, waiting for the moment they bust in.

My heart starts pounding in my chest, like large drums beating heavily and quickly. I positions my thumb near the guard as I down another gulp from my bottle. Waiting… almost time…

And then, the door was kicked opened and time slowed for me. Reflexively, I tossed my almost finished bottle at the first bounty hunter that came through that door, smashing the glass bottle into pieces and shards that stabbed into the guy's face.

With his scream of agony surprising his partner, I dashed forward drawing out Raitou and slashes down at him. The first one manages to get his bearings back and was too late as I stabbed right through the other by the gut.

I draw it out of him before reading myself in front of the rest of the hunters-who have guns, shit!

I immediately leaped passed a few shots before slashing down at the one closest to me. I ran forward and starts cutting down the gunners as fast as I could before they could aim at me.

"Gotcha, you bitch!"

I hear a voice on top as I saw a couple of leaped down from the mast with swords and axes at hand. I back-flipped from their attacks before leaping forward and slashing both of them in an instant. The rest of the gunners all raised their guns at me and pulled the trigger. I quickly pulls up one of the dead hunters and use one as a human shield for the bullets.

Before they can pull again, I tossed the dead body at them, knocking them out of formation which I use to my advantage and rushed forward, stabbing one by the shoulder before slashing down the rest of them.

Once they fell, that left me with a lot of dead bodies on the deck.

"…Better clean this up first…" I mumbled to myself as I starts to throw the bodies into the river below. The experience is kind of bizarre. At first, I didn't want to hurt anyone, but then they attacked, a certain switch is flipped in me. All the guilt I would have from killing them would evaporate into nothing.

They chose to attack, whether it was willingly or not, they chose.

Guess staying in this world for six months has changed my perspective a bit. And may have cracked my mentality a little too.

Speaking of which, my sword is definitely making it easier for me. Compared to the nameless katana I once had, Raitou surprising light. Plus its blade is sharp and hard.

Once the deck is empty again, I leaped down into town and starts running. I need to find Vivi. If I'm lucky, I might be able to convince her before Ms. Valentine and Mr. 5 come into play-

*BOOM*

I paused, looking at the direction of the explosion. Of course, I have to run out of time as soon as I finish up my fight… I quickly dashed towards where it came from.

After a few turns and maybe some dead ends, I made it onto the scene, just as a fat Luffy speeds passed me and into the building next to me. I looked at the crash site, before looking at Zoro in the distance. Ah…the whole misunderstanding… guess that much didn't change… but how did Nami convince Zoro to help?

"Hey, Zoro!" I called out as I ran towards him. I turned to Vivi next to him riding Carue. Okay, Carue is… weird. (I just realised that I have been using that word A LOT!) A large duck the size of a small horse with a bill the size of three heads, that's just weird. Not to mention the hat and saddle on it.

"Oi, Rein!" He shouted, "Nami had the bright idea to blackmail me to help her! Did you know that was going to happen?!"

"Uh… no, I don't honestly…" I stated, "I thought I've made sure that wasn't possible!" I mean, I gave Zoro money instead of Nami and I didn't ask for interest.

"Well, apparently she said that all our money and expenses belong to her! And that it doesn't manner who lend out money, it has to return to her with INTEREST!" He cried, "So now, I owe her 400 000 beris!"

"WHAT?!" I shouted, "That's utter bullshit! My money is my own! Not hers!"

"That's what I told her! But she won't listen!"

"That greedy little-!"

A large explosion pulls us out of our argument, the building Luffy was in exploded violently. From the smoke, a figure jumped up, Ms. Valentine floating in the air with her umbrella in the air. "Ugh, I had enough! Let me kill you off already! With my Kilo-Kilo Fruit's ability! Right now I'm only 1kg. But now…"

"Mr. Bushido! Ms. Dragon! Watch out! That woman is…!"

"I'll deal with her." I told Zoro, ignoring Vivi's cry.

"Thanks, because I really don't have time for that…" He tells me.

Out of the rubble, Luffy walked out all slimmed down with a beaten Mr. 5 in his hand, "Ah… that made for some good exercise. Finally manages to digest all that food I ate…"

"MR. 5?! That's impossible!" Vivi cried, "An officer agent of Baroque Works is…!"

"Time to get serious…"

"Luffy, calm down and listen to me." Zoro tells him, "The people of this village were actually all bounty hunters, like what Rein said. Meaning that they were our enemies!"

"D-Don't ignore me!" Ms. Valentine cried.

"LIAR! What kind of enemies would feed us?!" Luffy shouted.

"The kind that would feed you drugged food, you dingus…!" I groaned, before looking up at the BW officer in the air.

"Hello?! Are you even listening?!" She cried, "My ability allows me to freely change my weight! From 1kg to 10 000kg in a blink of an eye!" She them suddenly plummets down right at us, "Eat this! 10 000 Kilo Press!"

I swing my sword up still sheathed and she slams into the hilt hard. I think her jaw dislocated a bit from that, before she spun and slams into the ground in a crater. That was rather easy. She must that confident with her ability if she didn't see a counter like that coming.

"Seems like you just won't listen…" Zoro sighed as he undid his bandana and wrapped it around his head, "You simple-minded idiot! But if you're going to get serious, then so will I! Don't complain if I kill you!"

"Fine by me!"

"W-Wait a second, what's going on?! Aren't they crewmates?!" Vivi asked me, "So why are they doing this?!"

"It's because they are crewmates that Zoro need to do this." I tell her.

"Gum-Gum…!"

"Oni…"

"With Luffy's stubbornness, the only way for us to stop him is with force."

"BAZOOKA!"

"…GIRI"

The two attacks slammed against each other hard, the shockwave from the impact blasts at us from the distance. Another strike from each other slammed them into the two houses. I looked at Vivi and sighed, "Don't." I tells her, "If you even try to run pass them will get you killed."

And on cue, the two dumbasses got up and went right back into their brawl, wrecking shit wherever they hit as we looked at the mayhem.

I then notices Ms. Valentine struggling to get back up, "Denied!" I stomps my feet onto her head and crashes her into the ground again. I repeat this a few times with my fists and even went as far as slamming my sheath into her head as additional measure.

I place my sword back on my waist, before noticing Vivi's just stark pale expression. "…What?"

"…What part of you is a princess?"

"I didn't even want that name!"

"Damn you… you bitch!" I hear Mr. 5 getting up and rushing towards… ME?! "How dare you do that to my partner?!"

"Ah, shit!" I draw my sword and got ready to fight. Okay, a sword against a guy who can explode whichever part of his body… yeah, I'm screwed!

"God, you're annoying!"

I paused as the two idiots stopped their fight to turn their attention to him. Mr. 5 stopped in his tracks, staring at the two of them with terror in his eyes and mouth wide opened.

"You're in the way!"

With the combined might of their strength, they sends Mr. 5 flying with a slash and punch combo. He spun in the air with sword wounds and bruises all over before crashing onto the ground unconscious.

"…I-It can't be…" Vivi muttered, "How could there be guys this strong so close to the Grand Line entrance?!"

"Like a princess being undercover in a secret bounty hunter organisation can talk." I stated, getting a look from her, "Should I mention the duck too?"

The two turned to face each other before prepared to fight again. "Okay, that's enough!" I shouted rushing towards and kicking Luffy to the ground. "If you guys keep this up, the entire village will be in ruins!"

"Don't care!" Luffy shouted.

"Well, I do!" I yelled at him squeezing his head in with my knuckles, getting a cry from him.

"…At least he stopped…" Zoro muttered as he sheathes his sword.

"W-What's going on…?" Vivi asked, "Why did you guys save me…?"

"Well, allow me to answer that for you." I then notices Nami approaching Vivi from around the corner, "You see, you bodyguard has agreed into a contract with me for your safety-"

"Oi, Nami!" She turned to me confused as I toss Luffy aside and starts stomping up to her, "Whose money do you say belong to you?! This is the amount I've gotten from Sen and I'm keeping it!"

"Oh, what could you be talking about?" She asked with a smile, "You're part of the crew right? So all expenses are of the crews' with an exception of a set amount."

"Like hell it is!"

"Well, whatever floats your boat?" She smiled, "But thanks for the idea of looting this place. We're set for the next couple weeks."

"Don't change the subject!" I screamed.

"Um… may I know what you mean by 'contract'?" Vivi asked.

Nami pointed at her, before I groaned a little.

"…Don't think this is over."

"Oh, it's over."

Like hell it is. I'm keeping an eye on my rucksack from now on, who knows when she's going to dig into it for cash.

* * *

"Hahahaha! Jeez, you should have just said so!" Luffy laughed as we finally explained everything to him, "I thought you went and cut all those people because they didn't cook your favourite food or something!"

"Who do you think I am, YOU?!" Zoro shouted. All of us has decided to take refuge at a small corner by some buildings.

"Ahahahaha! Well, whatever. What's done is done."

"Like hell it's done!" I shouted at him, "I've told you guys that this town is filled with bounty hunters! And that this is a trap! A TRAP! And yet you guys got caught in it hook, line and sinker!"

"Ahahahaha!"

"And stop laughing, you rubber idiot!" I slammed my fist on his head. Damn it, I told them to be careful is to avoid shit like this!

"Sorry, but I refuse." Vivi tells Nami, "But you have my gratitude for saving me just now."

Damn, the change Vivi just exhibit is incredible. From a somewhat of a bitch to someone of noble birth, she really knows how to act.

"What, why?" Nami asked, "You're a princess, right?! A billion beri should be like spare change to you."

"Have you heard of a kingdom called Alabasta?" She asked us.

"No, can't say I have."

"It's a highly civilised country within the Grand Line." She explained, "And it used to be a peaceful one at that too long ago."

"Used to?" Nami picked up on that.

"The past few years have been mired by revolutionary activities." The princess continued, "Due to radical Alabastan revolutionaries, my country is currently in a state of chaos. Then one day, I happened to hear of a certain organization. That organization's name, is Baroque Works."

"Apparently, it was Baroque Works who had been instigating the revolutionaries. But other than that fact, I didn't know anything else, nor could I do anything about them. So I made a request to Igaram, who's been watching over me since I was a kid…"

"You mean that guy with the swirly hair?" Luffy asked.

"Even though what I had heard may or may not be a rumor, I asked Igaram if there were any way I could infiltrate Baroque Works." Vivi added on, "Because that could be the only way to clear the dark shadow that looms over Alabasta and determine what exactly is Baroque Works' objective once and for all."

"Well. Aren't you a brave princess?" Zoro stated.

"So, what exactly is the deal with this 'Creation of an Ideal Nation' that Baroque Works is apparently scheming towards?" Nami asked, before coming to realization, "Wait, don't tell me…"

"Yes, it's as you might suspect…" She stated grimly, "Although the boss hinted at a goal of creating an ideal nation, Baroque Works' true objective is the takeover of the kingdom of Alabasta! If I don't hurry back to stop the revolutionaries and tell people about them, things will go exactly as planned!"

"I see… that's why you refused…" Nami sighed, "A country in middle of a civil war won't have any money to spare…"

"So, who's this boss dude anyway?" Luffy asked.

"You mean the boss' true identity?! Please! Don't ask me! You are better off not knowing!" Vivi cried, "If you knew, Baroque Works would come and hunt you down!"

"Yeah, let's leave it at that." Nami nervously laughed, "I mean, a guy planning on taking over an entire country is going to be one dangerous individual!"

"Yes! Exactly! No matter how strong pirates you people are, you're no match for-"

"STOP!" I quickly covered her mouth before she could speak out one-who-shall-not-be-named. Nope! Not getting involved under the BW's blacklist this time! Especially not this way!

"Mm?!"

"You're about to speak out his name by accident!" I stated anxiously, "There's no way I'm having Crocodile at our backs for the rest of our voyage- and I just said his name, did I…?"

Vivi nodded numbly. FUCK! That was what I wanted to PREVENT! ME AND MY BIG MOUTH!

A small squawk as I turned to the side, everyone else followed my gaze as we saw the two animals of BW's roster of agents. The Unluckies: Mr. 13 and Ms. Friday. Got to admit, seeing an otter in a polka-dot onesie standing next to a vulture in an aviation hat and googles is something you don't see every day.

The two animals turned to each other before the otter climbs onto the vulture's back and- NOPE! NOT GETTING AWAY!

"Luffy! Grab those two right now!" I screamed.

"Huh? Why?"

"JUST DO IT, YOU RUBBER MONKEY!"

"Okay! Okay! Jeez…" He stretches his hands out just as the vulture is about to take off and snag the both of them by their headwear and pulls them back towards us- Is the otter taking out a bladed clamshell?! "Ack!" Luffy let go when Mr. 13 slashes his wrist, prompting two take off into the night sky.

…Yeah, we're fucked now…

"What was that bird and otter just now?!" Nami cried as she held me by my collar.

"U-Unluckies. A recon/cleaner unit of Baroque Works that reports directly to the head honcho himself…"

"And you just speak out their boss's name in front of them?!"

"A slip of the tongue, I swear!"

"So who's this Crocodile guy?" Luffy asked, "Is he a big deal?"

"Who knows?" Zoro shrugged, "I mean, he's named after a reptile of all things."

"Of course he's a big deal!" Vivi cried, "He's one of the Seven Warlords! He's really dangerous!"

"Oh ho! One of the Warlords!"

"Heh, not bad."

"You fucking idiot!" Nami continued to shake me about by my collar, "Because of your _slip of the tongue_ , we are getting hunted by one of the seven freaking Warlords! And just when we barely entered the Grand Line too…"

"If it'll make you feel better, I'm willing to spare some cash Sen left me…" I tells her.

"Like that would make me feel better!" She shouted, "…Okay, maybe a little… but not enough!"

"We must be really lucky to meet one of the Warlords this early." Zoro stated.

"I wonder what kind of you guy he is?" Luffy said.

"Shut up, you two!" Nami shouted before tossing me off and walking off, "It's been a short time travelling with you, but see you!"

"Where are you going, Nami?" Our captain asked.

"They don't know my face yet, so I'm running!" She stated firmly. I then saw her stopping in front of the Unluckies and- wait! A chance!

"Luffy! Quick!"

"Got it!" Luffy stretches to try and grab them, but they jumped out of the way and flew right off again. Goddamn it! So close!

"NOW I CAN'T EVEN RUN AWAY!" She screamed in despair.

"An interesting bunch, those animals." Our captain stated.

"Where were you planning on running away to…?" Zoro asked, "But in any case, with this, the four of us are now on Baroque Works' blacklist."

"This is so cool!" Luffy cheered.

"Like hell it is!" I shouted, "A freaking Warlord is after us! And his underlings are definitely very strong!"

"Come on, those two we beat within seconds." The pirate hunter tells me.

"Those two are the lowest in the spectrum!" I cried, "There are still seven more way tougher than them! …Actually, make that six." Mr. 3 isn't that big of a threat if we planned well enough.

"Fear not! It'll be arr-Ahem! Maa, maa, maa~! It will be alright! I have a plan!"

We stopped when we heard a familiar voice, we turned to face it and-oh my god! Okay, seeing a big man like Igaram in drag isn't what I have planned. And I think his 'dress' is just his shirt cut and held on by two strings…

"I-Igaram?! W-What's with that outfit?!" Vivi cried.

"Whoa! You can definitely pull off that look!" Luffy stated happily.

"WHERE?!" I shouted pointing at the drag queen, "Where on him does he looked like Vivi?!"

"Huh? He was dressing like Vivi?" He asked, "I thought he's dressing like a girl."

"…Actually, you made a valid point there." I nodded.

"Don't agree with him!" Nami cried.

"Enough about that and just listen to me." Igaram tells us, "Once Baroque Works' networks learns of what happened here, they'll be sure to send pursuers right away. More so, since you defeated Mr. 5 and his partner."

"Just to let you know, although the boss has no bounty on him since he's one of the Warlords, back in his heyday as a pirate, Crocodile had a bounty of 80 million beri."

"80 million?!"

"By the way, have you decided on whether or not to safely escort the princess back to Alabasta yet?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Luffy asked.

"He means he want us to take her home." Zoro explained.

"Oh. Sure, fine by me."

"Refuse his request!" Nami cried, "We're dealing with a pirate with four times the bounty as ARLONG, you know!"

"The captain has spoken, Nami." I tells her tiredly, "Nothing can change that."

"Why did I go out to sea with that idiot…?" She sobbed.

"Now then, princess." Igaram walks towards Vivi, "Please hand me the eternal pose to Alabasta."

"Huh? Eternal Pose? What's that?" Nami asked.

"A Log Pose that only records the magnetic field of one island." I tells her, "As such, it only points towards where that island is at all times."

"Yes, like that young lady said." The cross-dressed bodyguard nodded, "Princess Vivi, I shall take that Eternal Pose and set sail towards Alabasta while dressed like you and taking these four dummies to represent the four pirates. While the BW agents chase after me, you are to travel on the normal route towards Alabasta on their ship."

"I haven't sail to Alabasta using the normal route before, but there should be about 2 to 3 logs to record along the way."

"O-Okay, I understand." Vivi nodded.

* * *

After helping him set up the dummies on a spare boat lying around, we proceed to see him off, "I hereby leave the princess in your care." He tells us.

"I bet you'll totally fool them!" Luffy laughed.

"Fool who, exactly…?" Zoro asked.

"The journey ahead of you may be dangerous, so please be careful." He tells the princess.

"You too, Igaram." Vivi replied, shaking his hand one last time.

The sails are unfurled as Igaram left the island, "Aww, he left…he was such a funny guy too…" Luffy stated.

"He's always been so dependable." She noted.

"I bet he is…" I agreed. Although, there's something about this scene that feels… wrong. Like something bad is going to happen but I can't for the life in me remember what.

"Let's prepare to set sail, shall we?" Nami asked.

"Yes, let's-"

*BOOM*

At the next moment, the sea was set ablaze. Right where Igaram's ship is supposed to be. OH SHIT! That's right! His boat as rigged from the start! I'm such an idiot for forgetting that! FUCK!

"Pursuers?! Alright?!" Nami cried.

We saw Vivi just standing there, not moving but fists clenched tightly.

"…He was a fine man!" Luffy stated as he took off.

"Nami! How's the Log?" Zoro asked.

"I-It's finished recording!" She stated.

"Then let's hurry up and get going!" He called out as he ran after our captain.

I ran over to Vivi, "Come on! We got to hurry!" I tells her, "If we don't, they'll find us! Don't let Igaram's sacrifice be in vain!"

I then notices blood dripping down her lips. She's biting down on her lips so hard it drew blood… she's trying not to scream, or cry… she's so tough, worthy of one of noble blood.

"Don't worry!" I tells her squeezing her shoulder, "I swear on our lives that we'll bring you back to Alabasta! We are the guys that saved the East Blue on our own! What's a freaking Warlord to us, right?!"

Vivi looked at me blankly, before giving me a nod.

"Hey! Let's go already!" Nami called us, we took off into the streets. I notices as we ran, Vivi is looking around anxiously for something. Then I recalled, her duck isn't with us. At least, not at the moment.

"Relax, your duck is fine." I stated, she looking at me confused.

"Why do you said that?" She asked as we reached the Going Merry.

"I'll show you." I turned to Zoro, "Hey Zoro! Is there a duck up there?"

"Duck? You mean this guy?" He asked, pointing at Carue who magically appeared on deck next to him, "He got on the boat even before I did."

"Told you."

"THAT'S WHERE HE WAS?!" She cried, "…Oh right, the last place anyone would think to find him…"

"Anyway, let's set sail!" Luffy commanded.

"Aye-aye!" Everyone that are awake except for Vivi all take their posts and proceeds to unfurl the sails. Following the princess's instructions, we sail down the river towards the sea.

"Hey, so how many guys are going to come after us?" Luffy asked.

"I can't say for sure." Vivi tells us, "There's reportedly 2000 people working for Baroque Works, and towns like Whiskey Peak aren't uncommon either…"

"You mean that we could have a thousand people after us?!" Nami exclaimed.

"It's possible, considering how serious knowing the boss's real identity is…"

"What's going on?! Why did we have to set sail so soon?!" Sanji cried, he and Usopp finally regain consciousness, "Can't we stay at least one more night?! Their party was a blast and they have so many cute girls!"

"That's right! You have no idea if we'll ever come across a town like that ever again!" The sniper agreed, "So let's take things nice and easy! We _are_ pirates, you know! I mean, the sun hasn't even risen yet! Come on! Let's go back!"

"I think someone oughta go explain to them what happened." Zoro stated.

"Got it." I stated as I walked up to them and knocked them out again, "Done!"

"…Not exactly what I had in mind, but it'll do."

"The fog is lifting…" Nami stated, "It's almost morning…"

"Alright, we're almost out of here-"

"Be careful not to crash your ship into the rocks near the shore. And congratulations on your escape."

A voice stopped us, we turned around to see a woman sitting on the railings. I froze when I saw her. Those eyes filled with deception… a cowboy hat…

Nico Robin…

"Wha- Who's that?!" Zoro cried.

"I must tell you Ms. Wednesday, I met up with Mr. 8 just a little while ago." Robin chuckles.

"Are you saying… it was you who did that to Igaram…?" Vivi shakily stated.

"Hey! Why are you on our ship, anyways?!" Luffy asked.

"What're you doing all the way out here, Ms. All-Sunday?!"

"Who is it this time?!" Nami cried, "Whose partner is she?!"

"She's Mr. 0's partner, the only one who knows the boss true identity…" The princess explained, "Which is why Igaram and I tailed after her to find out who the boss was!"

"Well, technically it was more like I _let_ you tail after me." Robin stated.

"Oh, so she's a good guy." Luffy stated.

"I already knew that!" Vivi stated, "And I bet you're the one who told the boss that his identity was leaked!"

"Oh, so she's a bad guy!"

"Just what exactly is your objective?!"

"Now, now, no need to get so worked up." Robin smiled, "I only let you follow me because you looked so desperate. And it was just too amusing to observe, a single princess who foolishly thinks she can take on the entire Baroque Works organization and save her kingdom."

"Don't… DON'T YOU UNDERESTIMATE ME!"

And at that moment, all of us except Luffy all drew our weapons and points them at Robin. And is Sanji holding a gun?!

"…Would you please mind not pointing such dangerous weapons at me?" Robin sighed, as it was for a moment, just fast enough for no one to notice but I saw it, two arms grew out of the railing and throw Sanji and Usopp down to the deck.

"A Devil Fruit!" Vivi cried.

I then felt my sword being slapped off my hands, I took notice of the arm on my own arm before it dissipates.

"Is it a Devil Fruit?!" Zoro cried, "What kind of ability does she have?!"

"W-Whoa! She's a real beauty!" Sanji suddenly cried.

"Not the time!" I shouted.

"Fufufu… no need to get so riled up." Robin chuckles, "I haven't come here on any orders, nor do I have any reasons for fighting you people." Luffy's hat then floats up and tossed over towards her hand. "So you're the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, Monkey D. Luffy."

"Ah! Give me back my hat!" Luffy shouted, "Are you trying to pick a fight with us now?!"

"How unfortunate…" She stated as she places the straw hat on her own hat, "Small-time pirates having to look after a princess targeted by the entire Baroque Works organization… and a lone princess having to entrust herself to a few small-time pirates…" "

But above all, how unfortunate your route pointed out by your Log Pose is…"

"Wha…?"

"The name of the next place on your journey is, Little Garden." She explained, "Even if I weren't lay a single finger on you, it's more likely that you'd still never reach Alabasta. Without even meeting Crocodile, the curtains will close on your mission, and your lives."

"As if we'd just roll over and die!" Luffy shouted, "Now give me back my hat!"

"Yeah! How dare you, y-you big meanie!" Usopp echoed.

"How old are you?" Zoro asked.

"Enough howling, anyone could put up a brave front." Robin tell us as she tossed back Luffy's hat back on his head as well as something extra towards Vivi.

"An Eternal Pose…?"

"You'll be able to skip right over your future troubles with that." She explained, "The needle of that Eternal Pose points to an obscure uninhabitable island located right before Alabasta. Moreover, the route you'll be navigating on is unknown to Baroque Works so you won't be followed, either."

"What? Is she not a bad person, then?" Nami asked.

"W-Why would you give such a thing to me?!" Vivi asked.

"…It's probably a trap." Zoro concluded.

"Oh, I wonder about that…" Robin smiled.

I thought about that. If we take Robin's suggestion, we could dodge Little Garden and Mr. 3 altogether. But I won't know if that island is safe or not… But then, Robin doesn't trust Crocodile at all so this might be a contingency plan for her in case their partnership goes sour.

"Enough wasting time with that!" Luffy tells Vivi as he take the Eternal Pose from her hands and smashes in his hand.

"Are you an idiot?!" Nami cried as she kicked Luffy down, "She came out all the way here to teach us the safest route to Alabasta! What are you going to do if she _does_ turns out to be a good person?!"

"Don't you dare think that you can choose the path of our journey!"

"…I see…" Robin chuckles, "How unfortunate."

"Don't worry, Ms. All-Sunday." I tells her as I picked up my sword, "We're not going to die before meeting Crocodile. I can assure you that."

"Oh? Is that so?" She chuckled, "Well, I don't dislike bold men, or women…" Wait, what?! "Let us meet again soon if you survive." She then leaps off the boat and onto large sea turtle and proceeds to sail(?) off.

"Whoa! It's a turtle!" Luffy stated excitedly, "What a huge turtle…"

"That woman…!" Vivi dropped to the floor shaking in what I presumed in frustration, "I don't have the faintest idea what she's really planning!"

"Then it's a waste of time and effort to think about it." Nami assures her.

"We've got an incomprehensive person like her onboard too, you know." Zoro explained.

"Hey! Can someone explain the situation to us already?!" Usopp cried.

"Will Ms. Wednesday be joining our crew~?" Sanji cooed.

"…Oh! The one that Rein said we need to pick up!" The sniper cried, "So it's her… why are we picking her up anyway?"

"I'll explain later." Zoro tells him.

"Okay… Whoa! There's an ostrich on our boat!" He cried.

"Quack!"

"No, I think it's a duck…" Sanji stated.

I just stood rooted there, understanding what Robin just said. Is she…? Does she…? Images of her porn flooded my brain. Nope! Nope! Don't think about it too hard! She's probably messing me! I just know it!

…Although, if she isn't…

"It's morning! Sanji! Time for breakfast!" Luffy declared.

I looked at Luffy with equal confusion and understanding. Ah well, let's think about that later. First thing first…

"Sanji! Breakfast please~!"

"Coming right up, Rein-chwan~!"

Nami is right! Taking advantage of him is awesome!

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Okay! Done with Whiskey Peak! Okay, for those who are thinking if Robin is really bi… in canon, I don't think so. I mean, I think majority of the main cast is close to asexual than anything else.**

 **But for this story, let's make her one. Not due to fetishes, no…**

… **Okay, maybe a little…**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	12. Ch 12:The Little in Little Garden

**Chapter 12: The Little in Little Garden.**

* * *

After breakfast, we finally explained the reason behind Vivi's joining our crew to our last two remaining members. They reacted as we suspected as much.

"I see, well that's a shame." Sanji smirked as he lit up a new cigarette, "But I guess that also means that I've still got a chance to shine. So don't worry! Now that the sleeping prince has awoken, your safety is guaranteed!" Before turning to me and Nami with a perverse smile, "Jealous, Nami-san? Rein-chan?"

"Not really/Nope."

"Wow… Glad I've slept through all of that…" Usopp stated in relief, "Well, you can count on me to back you up! The whole world's talking about whether or not the 30 million bounty isn't actually for my head instead!"

"I wonder if it's going to snow…" Luffy wonders.

"Why the hell would it snow?" Zoro asked.

"You don't know because you were sleeping the whole time!" I shouted angrily, kicking him by the side earning a glare from him.

"Hey! Do you think it'll snow some more?" He asked Vivi.

"Well, it's not like it never snows or anything, but that part of the Grand Line up to the very first island is special." Vivi explained, "The seven magnetic fields that stretches from Reverse Mountain clash together to make thing even more unpredictable."

"So you can't let down your guard even for a minute. Even though it would be quite rare to encounter such bizarre conditions once you passed the first island, the Grand Line is still by far the most difficult ocean to navigate on. So it's absolutely imperative that you never underestimate the sea!"

Her words are, of course, fell on deaf ears as the rest of us just went on with our own activities when she was talking. I decided to take the opportunity to write down what happen on Whiskey Peak on the logbook by asking Zoro and the rest of the guys.

"So… they have meat." I concluded as I wrote it down.

"Yup!" Luffy listed off, "Big meat, grilling meat, meat on fish-"

"Sorry but _meat on fish_?"

"Yeah, there is!" Usopp stated excitedly, "I'm not even joking! They wrapped chunks of meat around a whole fish and roasted it!"

"Huh… Is it any good?" I asked.

"No clue." Zoro shrugged, "Luffy ate all of it before we could try."

"It was delicious!" Our captain stated happily.

"Okay, meat on fish then…" I continue to write down.

"Anyone up for some special drinks?!" Sanji called out as he climbed to where we are with a tray of glasses.

"You bet we are!" We all replied happily.

We all receive all the drinks, I taking a nice sip of the fruity and refreshing concoction before continue writing. "So, anything else to add in?" I asked.

"Oh! I beat all of the drinking contest!" Zoro stated firmly.

"Okay, anything besides Zoro's impossible alcohol consumption." And I quickly add in, "Or Luffy's black hole of a stomach, Sanji's perverseness and any of Usopp's lies."

"…"

"…Okay, then that's everything." I nodded firmly as I closed the logbook and continue to sip on my drink.

"Oh, looks like this duck know how to drink!" Sanji stated happily as he fed Carue one of our drinks that he happily sips up, "Taste good, right?"

"Hey, Usopp. Can you make us some fishing rods?" Luffy asked.

"Fishing, eh? Not a bad idea." Zoro nodded.

"Sure thing!" Usopp stated happily, "Let me just fire up my ol' artistic skills to create masterwork fishing rods!"

"Oh, mind improving on mine as well?" I asked.

"Sure, why not?"

"Hey, look! It's a dolphin!"

We all looked at where Sanji pointed, a white dolphin has indeed sprung out of the water.

"Oh, it's so cute-"

And then we realized its actual size.

"IT'S FREAKING HUGE!"

"Let's run away!" Luffy cheered.

"Aye-aye!" We all ran to our stations, me helping with steering as we rode the waves caused by it out and away. A few moments later, the sea was calm as before, we returned to our own activities.

There's one thing Oda has not mentioned in the manga but was filled in during the anime, travel time.

Jeremiah Cross is right about that one. It takes quite a while, days in fact, to get to each island. Except for Whiskey Peak which happened within hours to my surprise, Nami conjectured it to the crazy weather which speeds up our voyage.

Anyway, during that time, there are many things involved, including revealing something for our new crew member…

* * *

"So… Rein is from another world that have this book about the adventures of the Straw Hat Pirates, including what happened in Whiskey Peak." Vivi stated, "Does that summarize what she just said?"

"Yup, all of it." Usopp nodded, "And it's true. She has proven it to us too."

"She _could_ have a Devil Fruit that gave her some sort of clairvoyance." She pointed out.

"Nope, she can swim." Zoro stated.

"Yeah we all saw it." Sanji stated, "And she swam with a grace of a mermaid~"

"And she had the same schedule of swimming every morning." Nami explained, "Soak the entire deck wet every time too."

"…So from another world?" She asked me.

"Yup." I nodded, "Before you ask me, I won't be telling you about Alabasta in the future, not yet anyway. But I can assure you, Crocodile will be defeated. That much I can say."

"…That's… plenty…" She sighed in relief.

"Oh! That reminds me!" Nami stated with beri signs in her eyes, "You haven't answer my question! Are we getting any richer soon?! How much and where will we find it-?!"

"And mermaids!" Sanji stated excitedly, "Do we meet any mermaids?! Maybe the mermaid princess herself-?!"

"What about me?!" Usopp chimed in, "Do I become a great warrior in the future? What kind of great feats do I accomplished then-?!"

"…Fights." Zoro asked, "What kind of great fights do we get into-?"

"E-Everyone, just calm down…" I stated as I am bombarded with questions.

"SHUT UP!"

Silence is the law as we turned to our captain who is huffing a little, "No one asked Rein about anything!" He shouted, "I don't want any spoilers for our adventures ahead! It will make them very boring!"

"…Huh, if the captain has spoken…" I shrugged, "Sorry, my mouth is sealed." They all groaned in disappointment, "But I can warn us about impending dangers, right?"

"…Sure, I'm good with that." Luffy nodded.

"Thank god for that!" Usopp stated happily.

* * *

To getting some interesting news from the paper…

* * *

"It sure is hard to get some news out here…" Nami muttered as she unfurled the papers she just gotten.

"Well, the unpredictability of the Grand Line makes it hard for the News Coos to fly over." Vivi explained, "Just getting an up-to-date paper is hard enough as it is."

"We get what we can, I guess…" I stated as I drank my cold tea.

"Hm?" Luffy suddenly leaned in to read it, "Oh! Hey, hey! Zoro, look at this!"

"What? The newspaper?" Zoro wondered.

"What about it?" Nami asked, "It's just a picture of the marines."

"Yeah, but it's the people on it that is interesting!" He stated.

"Hm? Isn't that Coby?"

"See?!"

"Coby…? You mean that one friend you mentioned that one time?" Nami asked.

"Yup!" Luffy nodded, "So, what does it say?!"

"What it say…?" Our navigator takes a closer read at the article, "[Vice-Admiral Garp's warship has arrived at Marine Headquarters. This picture was taken just as they crossed over Reverse Mountain. As expected, the Vice-Admiral is unfazed by the journey but a couple of new recruits are taken by surprise by it.]"

"Oh ho! So that Coby is on the Grand Line now, huh?" Luffy stated happily.

"It said Marine Headquarters." Zoro smirked, "Not too bad, for him."

"No matter what people say, he is the man who'll become a Marine Mayor!"

"Who wants to be a mayor, you idiot? It's Officer! Marine Officer!"

"Yep, that one!"

"Eh… So your friend has reached here too." Sanij stated.

"Hope we see each other soon!" Luffy cheered.

"Oh, there's more." Nami reads a little closer, "Let's see here… [And as a prison escort for her new post, Captain Suiren of the 20th Branch of the East Blue followed suit with the Vice Admiral with the custody of one Arlong Pirate crew. The Ocean Amazon seems unaffected yet excited of this voyage.]."

"PPPFFFFFTTTTTTTT!" I spit-take my tea in sheer shock, "Suiren?! Seriously?! And she's a captain now?!"

"Huh? You know her, Rein?" Vivi asked me.

"She was a friend I made a few months back." I explained, "Her family saved my life. So she's a captain now… must have gotten promoted a couple months after I left. Wonder how she's doing…?"

"But this captain is a she…?" Zoro asked, looking at the photo, "Where is she? All I see is the guy."

"That's her." I lightly laughed.

"Seriously?!" Nami cried, "I just don't see it? Are you really sure she's a girl?!"

"Yeah, we bathed together once, so I know."

"Now that I think about it, I think I've heard this Ocean Amazon before…" Sanji stated, "She earned that name for her amazing prowess on the open waters, leaping onto pirate ships in order to capture them."

"At least we have someone to look out for, right?" I stated with a smirk.

So Suiren is on the Grand Line too, huh? Sure would be nice to meet her…

* * *

And then to some rather… surprising mundane issues…

* * *

"You catching anything yet?" Luffy asked.

"Nope, nothing yet…" I stated.

"Not even a nibble…" Usopp stated with sigh.

"You guys suck…" Our captain moaned.

"Who do think ate all our bait in the first place?!"

"And our substitute is some wooden fishes…" I added with a sigh.

"It was your idea!" Our sniper cried.

"It seems like a good one at the time…" I stated. I then looked at Carue, the duck flinching at my gaze, "…Wanna use Carue?"

"Quack?"

"Oh, that could work."

"We might catch Sea Kings with him!"

"Quack?!"

"No, you won't!" Vivi shouted slamming us on the head.

"Tch, party pooper…"

* * *

Then finally, we reached our destination. I stood by Nami as she took measurement with the Log Pose. "There's no doubt about it. Our next destination is that island up ahead!"

"Woohoo! Our second island on the Grand Line!" Luffy cheered.

I shook with anticipation and excitement, Little Garden! Dinosaur Land! YEAH! I've changed into a beige long-sleeved jacket over my black camo-designed one-piece and beige pants with brown boots.

"We should be careful…" Vivi tells us, "I'm worried about what Ms. All-Sunday said about this island."

"Y-You don't think there are monsters here, do you?" Usopp asked.

"Beats me." Sanji shrugged, "But we gotta stock up on some food soon. I wasn't able to restock at all at the last town."

"And Nami didn't think about stealing supplies back then because…?" I glared at her, she glared back.

"But man, just look at this place…" The blonde cook stated, "It's like a land yet to be explored by people. The entire island is a thick jungle."

"Just what about this place is 'little'?" Zoro asked.

"I can't say I see anything that would deserve such a cute name like Little Garden though…" Nami stated, "And look!" She points out some unique ferns, "I've never seen any plants like these even in all of my encyclopaedias!"

" **GYAAA! GYAAA!** "

"KYAH!"

"That's some squawking!" I stated in awe.

"What was that?!" Nami cried.

"Terrified Nami is so cute…~" Sanji cooed, "Don't worry, it's just a bird. Even this island is just your average jungle, you know." I looked at where he is pointing, the large bird-lizard thing flying away.

"…That's pretty awesome, if I say so myself…" I muttered.

*KRAK-BOOM*

The large boom of something shook the entire boat. "Does THAT sound like an average jungle to you?!" Nami cried.

"That sounded like a volcano exploding or something!" Usopp cried.

"So that's what a volcano sounds like…" I mumbled.

Some ruffling in the leaves caught our attention, we turned to see a large tiger with a large chunk of it bitten out as it collapses right in front of us.

"This is definitely not normal!" Nami cried, "Otherwise, why would a tiger, the king of the jungle, collapse covered in its own blood?!"

"Alright, then it's decided. We are not to set food on this island!" Usopp stated firmly.

"Let's just quietly wait on our ship and leave the very second our Log Pose finishes recording!" She concluded, "After all, we have to hurry on to Alabasta as soon as possible."

"Sanji! Prepare a lunchbox!"

"A lunchbox?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah! A Pirate Lunchbox!" Luffy stated with a face-wide grin on his face, "I smell an _adventure_ up ahead!"

"W-Wait just a second!" Nami cried, "Where do you think you're going?!"

"On an adventure!" He stated excitedly, "Shishishi! Wanna come along?!"

"Yup, he's all fired up now." I stated as Nami sobbed silently.

"Sanji! Lunchbox!"

"Alright, alright. Just give me a moment." Sanji stated as he enters the kitchen.

"Could I come along with you?"

"Sure!"

"Even you, Vivi?!" Nami cried.

"Just standing around here doing nothing is only going to end up making me think about my worries again." She explained, "So might as well try to clear my head until the Log Pose finishes recording. I'll be fine with Carue by my side."

"…?!"

"I think your trusty bodyguard looks too scared to even quack…"

"Then allow me to make a lunchbox of _love_ for you, Vivi-chan~!"

"Could you also make another drink for Carue as well?"

"If that's your wish~!"

After some packing and preparing, Luffy and Vivi aboard Carue went off into the jungle, "We'll be back!" She tells us as they disappear into the foliage.

"That Ms. Wednesday got some guts…" Usopp stated in surprise.

"As expected of the one who infiltrated Baroque Works." Nami nodded.

"Since I'm not doing anything either, I'll go for a walk." Zoro tells us as he cracks his neck and leaves the boat.

"A walk?!"

"Oh! Zoro, wait!" Sanji called out, "We're running out of food, so if you see any animals that looked somewhat edible, can you hunt it down and bring it back?"

"Sure thing." He nodded, "I'll go hunt for some animals you'd never be able to kill yourself."

"WAIT RIGHT THERE!"

"Huh?"

"Did I hear you wrong," Sanji looked at him with a scowl, "Or did you just imply that you could hunt a bigger game than me?"

"Isn't that obvious?" Zoro pointed out.

"Grr…! That's it! I'm calling a hunting contest!" The blonde cook shouted as he leaped off the boat after him, "Whoever brings back the most kilos of meat will be the winner!"

"Fine by me!" The swordsman huffed, "Though in my case, it would be tonnes of meat."

"Why does everyone on this ship have to be like that…?" Nami sobbed.

"I know exactly how you feel Nami…" Usopp sobbed.

"Hey! Wait up!" I shouted as I stepped onto the railing, "Bet I can get a bigger one than any of you-Ouf!" I suddenly was dragged down by my ankles, causing me to face-plant on the railings hard, "WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!"

"PLEASE! DON'T LEAVE!" Our sniper sobbed.

"JUST STAY!" Our navigator cried, "DON'T LEAVE US ALONE HERE!"

"…Fine…" I sighed, "Bunch of cowards…"

"Proud of it!" Nami stated, "…Wait a second…"

"What?"

"I feel like I've read this in a book before…" She stated, "I'm sure I've heard of it… of Little Garden…"

"Really?" Usopp asked.

"I'll go check it out!" She stated as she rushed inside, leaving me and Usopp on the deck.

"…"

"…"

"…Just wondering… does this place has monsters?" He asked me.

"Not monsters, just animals." I stated with a smirk, "Really. Big. Animals."

"…I suddenly gets the chills…"

"Usopp! Rein!" Nami cried as she ran out of the cabin.

"What, did you find the book?" He asked.

"We're in trouble! On this island is…!"

*THUD*

We all froze as we turned towards the noise, a large shadow slowly makes its appearance from the trees. Nami and Usopp screamed as we came face to face with one of the greatest, if the only, warriors of Elbaf, Broggy the Red Orge.

To call them gigantic is not an exaggeration. They really are giants! It's like looking up at one of the world's largest skyscraper that can move and talk! And he is kneeling!

"Have any rum?"

"E-Eh…?"

"I'm asking if you have any rum." He repeated.

"O-Oh! W-We do have some…" Nami stated shakily.

"Oh! So you do have some!" Broggy smiled, before screaming in pain. We looked behind him, seeing a Tyrannosaurus biting down on his butt hard. And with one swift move, he draws and beheads the dinosaur with his axe, "I'm Elbaf's strongest warrior, BROGGY! GABABABABABA!"

"W-Whoa…" I muttered in shock. His loud proclaim of his title is really echoing, not just literally either. This giant- no, MAN, is proud of his life. Not many have that kind of pride in them.

"Good, I got us some meat!" He stated with a smile, "Let me welcome you as my guests!"

"W-We're honored…" I replied back.

"Say, are your friends alright?" He asked me, I turned to see Nami and Usopp playing dead.

"…Mind giving us a lift?"

* * *

"There! It's all cooked!" Brogy stated he lands a large piece of dinosaur meat in front of us, "Eat up!"

"W-We're not hungry…" Nami shakily tells him.

"I'll have some." I stated as I tears a piece out of the roasted dinosaur meat.

"R-Rein…!" Usopp silently cried.

"Don't need to decline out of modesty!" The giant laughed, "Eat as much as you want! Dinosaur meat's especially delicious, you know!"

"He's right!" I stated happily chewing on the piece of meat on my hand.

"S-Stop it, Rein!" Our sniper hissed at me.

"Relax, will you." I tells him, "Giants don't eat people."

"Yeah, why would we eat you?" Brogy asked as he bites into his chuck of meat, "I mean, there are better things to eat."

"Still, this is good meat!" I chewed happily, "I've hunted a few dinosaurs before, but this is the first time I'm eating Tyrannosaurus meat!"

"Oh? What kind?"

"Velociraptors, a Triceratops one time; that one was tricky to cut apart."

"Oh yeah, they have those thick hides." The giant nodded, "I find it easier to roast it as it is before cutting into it."

"They are talking like old buddies…" I hear the two of them mumbled.

"U-Um, Mr. Brogy…?" Nami asked, "May I ask you a question?"

"Hm? What is it, girl?"

"How long does it take for a Log Pose to finish recording on this island?"

"Hm… A full year, if I remember correctly." Broggy stated, the two cowards of our crew falls back in despair from that news, "So take it easy! There's plenty to eat around here! GABABABABABA!"

"Hahahaha!" I laughed along with him. Man, this guy is a blast to talk to. Or maybe he is that easy to talk to? Either way, I'm having a great time talking to him!

"…You know what, if I'm going to die anyway, I'm at least dying with a full stomach." Usopp declared as he walked up the roasted meat and tears out a piece. When he places it into his mouth, his eyes opened wide, "Delicious! I've never tasted such meat before!"

"I know, right?" I tells him, "There's this certain flavor you can't get on any other animal!"

"Glad the long nose liked it! GABABABABA!" The giant laughed.

"Hey, Nami, you got to try this!" He shouted as he tossed a piece to her, she stumbles before grabbing onto it.

She looked at it, back at us where I gives her a thumbs-up. She sighed grimly before biting into it, "Oh! You're right! This is good!"

"Really good!" Usopp stated as he pulls another piece out.

*KRAK-BOOM*

A volcano suddenly erupted from the distance, we stopped to admire the loud mountain of lava. It was then I notices Broggy's eyes sharpened with conviction as he stood up, "Sorry, my guests. I have to head out for a moment."

"What? Head out?" Nami asked.

"Yeah." The giant nodded, "That was a signal for the duel I've been in for 100 years."

"A duel?"

"With whom?" Usopp asked, "Where, and for what reason?"

"Reason? I've forgotten about it! GABABABABABA!" He laughed as he charges off.

We stared at the distance as we saw him rushed towards another giant, Dorry if I recall, as they clashes with each other. The shockwave from that echoes all over the island, creating a mini-earthquake that was felt all over.

I looked on in awe as the two giants duke it out, sword on shield, axe on blade, blocking with his helmet alone, it is a gigantic brawl of wits and skills.

"Damn…" I muttered.

"W-What a fight…" Usopp cried, "All of their attacks are aiming for each other's most vital points! They really trying to kill each other!"

"And they've been fighting like this for over 100 years?" Nami wonders, "But it's good for us! This is our chance to escape! Let's go, Usopp, Rein!"

"Wow…"

"Usopp?"

"Even without reason, they carried on fighting like this…" He stated.

"God, what a nuisance they are…" Nami sighed.

"You fool! This is what a man's fight is!" He snapped at her.

"…Huh?"

"Let's say that there's a metaphorical flag raised in their hearts… those flags are more important than their very lives! They don't want to their flags to be broken, no matter what! And so, to protect that flag, they continued this fight for over 100 years!"

"Can't you see?! This is a real battle of pride between two warriors!"

"Well, I'm not interested in any of that stuff so I'm going to take off!" she tells him.

"I'm going to stay here a bit longer and watch!" Usopp declared, "This is it! This is what I meant by a Brave Warrior of the Seas! I want to become a proud warrior just like them!"

"So a giant?" I asked.

"No! Are you even listening?!" He shouted at me, "If there's an entire village full of warriors like them, I'd sure like to visit it one day!"

"Hm… I'm sure we will." I smiled, "Although, I still don't think you can become a giant."

"That's not it!"

* * *

"Brave Warrior of the Seas?" Broggy asked as he returned from his duel, a little bruised but that's it, "What's that?"

"It's someone like you!" Usopp explained, "I want to become like you two one day!"

"A giant?"

"See?" I chuckled.

"No, that's not what I mean!" He cried, "I want to live a proud and honorably life! Just like the warriors of Elbaf!"

"GABABABABA! I see!" The giant laughed, "We giants have a much longer lifespan than humans, so we wish nothing more than an honorable death. After all, one's fortune or life is bound to come to an end one day."

"To a warrior of Elbaf, to die without tarnishing one's pride is what we mean by an honorable death. Our pride along never comes to an end. It's an eternal treasure that's passed on throughout the lands of Elbaf."

"Ah! So your pride is your treasure!" The sniper exclaimed.

"That's a rather impressive treasure you have." I stated smiling.

"I think it's pretty stupid." Nami scoffed.

"…I wonder if Dorry liked the rum." Broggy ponders, "It's been 100 years since we had any, so the taste might be different from what we had back then…"

"I'm sure he liked it." I tells him, "Our rum is-" Then I froze. Crap, crapcrapcrap! SHIT! I FORGOTTEN THIS TIPBIT!

"Rein, what's that look?" Nami asked worriedly.

"Did you check the rum before giving it to him?!" I asked.

"Hm? Not really." Broggy stated, "I mean, it's just rum."

"This is bad! This is really bad!" I cried.

"What's bad?!" Usopp asked worriedly, "Oh god, is the rum expired?!"

"What?!"

"NO! EVEN WORSE!" I shouted, "It's rigged! An agent of Baroque Works has planted an explosive in one of the barrels that if I'm right, which I wish I wasn't, might have exploded inside your friend's stomach!"

"WHAT?!" Broggy cried as he stood up in shock, "I fed my friend an explosive rum barrel?!"

"Seriously?!" Usopp cried, "Which agent is it?!"

"Mr. 3…" I muttered, "I know Luffy says no spoilers but this guy is way too dangerous! Listen! Mr. 3 is an agent that is known for being a brilliant strategist! For every step we take, he planned out three in advance."

"Not only that, he is a Devil Fruit power, the Wax-Wax Fruit!"

"Wax?" Nami looked at me confused, "I thought you said dangerous? Wax isn't that threatening."

"Devil Fruit bullshit is dangerous, regardless how dumb it originally sounds!" I cried, "Sure, it is wax, but it once solidify is as tough as steel! Imagine getting trapped by that! Or worse, getting swallowed by it!"

From the pale expressions from the two, I've made my point quite clear.

"W-What do we do?!" Usopp cried, "If that guy is on the island with us, what can we do against him?!"

"No, there is a weakness!" I quickly added on, "His wax maybe as tough as steel, but it's still wax! It can be melted! Also, he is perfectionist to a fault! I may say plan three steps forward, but he fail to settle for any contingency plans as back-up! He will follow his own plan right down to the letter!"

"Okay, so fire against him, got it…"

"What does he look like?" Nami asked me.

"A guy with a big three hairstyle."

"…Seriously?"

"Yeah, I never understand why he does that…"

"At least we can't miss him." Usopp pointed out.

"I'll keep a lookout for him, too." Broggy stated, from his tone is a really pissed one, "For someone to sully a sacred duel between warriors… I'll never forgive him!"

*KRAK-BOOM*

We all froze as we saw the volcano erupted. Crap, did I talked too long?!

"Talk about bad timing…" Broggy stated, "But to miss a duel is to stain one's honor."

"Y-You can't!" Usopp cried, "This isn't a proper duel anymore! Even if either of you win, it's not worth it!"

"But Dorry would be fighting, regardless of his wounds." The giant stated firmly, "I would know, I would do the same thing if it happens to me."

"Master Broggy…"

"Don't worry." He tells the sniper, "I won't try to kill him. Not on such conditions. I'll try to knock him out, it's the least I can do."

"We'll try to find Mr. 3 on our end!" Nami tells him, "Try to make it look like a normal duel! That might keep him from getting suspicious!"

"Got it, little ones." Broggy nodded, "May Elbaf bless us this day!" He then charges back into the duel.

I turned to my other two crewmates, "If my knowledge is still relevant, Zoro might has already been captured. Nami would be next, and then lastly is Vivi before attempting on Luffy's life. But since my face was recorded as well, I may be a target too."

"So, prevent getting captured, find Mr. 3 and burn him." Usopp stated.

"But how would he capture us?" Nami asked, "I mean, sure the wax may be tough, but Zoro would have seen that coming a mile away."

"Because of his partner, Ms. Golden Week." I stated, "A young girl with a talent for painting and an incredible hypnotist that uses paints to screw with her target's emotions. With her paints and his wax, they can create almost life-like statues of anyone."

"They created statues of us and lay them out as traps!?" She concluded.

"Yes! So big advice!" I looked at them firmly, "If you see any of us four, Luffy, Zoro, Nami or me, don't approach immediately. Shout, shoot, anything, just don't get anywhere close!"

"Good for me!" Usopp stated proudly, "Attacking at a safe distance is my specialty!"

"Alright! Let's look for Luffy at once!"

* * *

"OH COME ON NOW!" I screamed as me, Nami and Usopp all ran as fast as we could from the dinosaur chasing us. Not sure which breed, but I'm not risking my life just to check.

"Rein! Didn't you say you hunted dinosaurs before?!" Nami cried.

"That was when I had traps and a good position to strike!"

"Run! Run like you mean it!" Usopp cried as he ran faster and faster, until he is nothing but a speck in front of us.

"REALLY?!" I shouted at him, "At a time like this?!"

"H-Hold on!" Nami panted as we hid behind a tree as the giant reptile, okay I have no idea what that is, "I need to *pant* catch my breath… *pant*"

"But we need to get to Luffy soon…" I stated firmly. I then took notice someone in the distance, who looks a lot like Luffy, but is very still with his hand up in the air.

"Hey, it's Luffy!" Nami cried.

"Good to see you!" I then glanced at her as I held my hand up, she understanding what I meant and closed her mouth.

I then took a deep breath…

"LOOK! THERE'S A MOUNTAIN OF MEAT OVER THERE!"

I waiting with bated breath, pointing at a random direction as we watch 'Luffy' reaction.

Nothing.

Not even a twitch.

"Yup, that's a statue." I tells her.

"Damn, it looks so life-like…" She stated.

"That's how scary Mr. 3 is."

"Thanks for the compliment~!"

I couldn't react in time as me and Nami are swallowed up by white wax and my world became black.

* * *

The next time I awoke, I face-planted onto the grassy ground hard. I felt my hands and legs restrained, looked down to see the white pillars of wax cuffing them together. Damn it! Even when I'm cautious shit like this happens!

"W-What is that thing?!" I hear Nami cried as I quickly got on my knees.

In front of us is what I've dreaded about, the infamous Candle Service Set. But you got to give props to Mr. 3. He knows art. Although the jack-o'-lantern is a little much.

"Nami?! Mr. Bushido?! Rein?!"

"Vivi?! Crap, you were captured?!" Nami cried, "Damn it! We were being cautious too!"

"I'm sorry, young lady…" Broggy tells us, I took notice of Dorry's dead body next to him, "Despite your warnings…"

"I'm quite impressed by that." Mr. 3 said as he walked up to us, "How did you know about my plans? Did one of you spied on me?"

"Us to know, and for you to never figure out." I smirked at him.

"Heh, nice, Rein." I saw him smirked.

"My, my, what a mouth you have." Mr. 3 scoffed, "Talk smack all you want, you won't be talking once I'm done with you all! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my 'Service Set'!"

"Mr. 5, please show our guests their seats~"

"Sure thing."

A few struggles, and bite from me on his nose (he bled, I'm satisfied with that!), they placed us all on the dumb candle cake of death. "This must be what it feels like to be a candle stuck on a cake." Zoro pointed out.

"Not a good feeling, I must admit." I nodded, as I tried to wiggle my toes.

"We can't even move…" Nami stated.

"Well, duh. Our enemies aren't just going to let us move freely." The swordsman tell her.

"Hey… something's drizzling down…" Vivi pointed out.

"FUHAHAHAHA! Yes, have a good taste of my candle service!" Mr. 3 laughed, "That mist of wax sprinkling down on your heads will eventually turn you all into wax-figures! A perfect wax-human the likes of which even my sculpting skills can't create! You'll be wax dolls with true souls! So give your lives up for the sake of beauty!"

"No! I'll never become something like that, you sick fuck!" Nami shouted, "Broggy! Don't just lie there! Do something! You're going to be turned into a wax-figure too at this rate!"

"Hmph! It's futile no matter what you say to him!" Mr. 3 laughed, "For you see, despite his best efforts not to, he killed the very friend whom he has been dueling with for the past 100 years! Such a tragic yet beautiful conclusion for what a rather dull and ugly duel, wouldn't you say? And even if he tries to do something, it's far too late!"

"Gabababa… did you really think I've killed him?" Broggy asked.

"Of course! What else could that conclusion be?!" He laughed at the giant, "And it was quite a funny scene too! You crying your eyes out like a baby! FUAHAHAHAHA! My sides nearly split when that happened!"

"Well, I like to say a few words to that." The giant smirked, "Back. Of. The. Blade. Dumbass."

"Back of the-WHAT?!"

"Broggy, you son of a bitch!"

Dorry suddenly awoke with anger in his eyes, much to everyone's shock, even mine! I swear he looked dead just a moment ago! With a hefty shout, the giant got up on his knees gritting his teeth, "Is this what you want me to hear?! This disgrace?!"

"It is, Dorry!" Broggy shouted as he starts to break out of his restraints, "Shall we teach them how we deal with such people back on Elbaf!?"

"Yes, we shall-GARH!"

Dorry then was hit with an explosion, knocking him down on to the ground on his back.

"DORRY!"

Broggy too was hit with an explosion, knocking him out for a moment.

"What a pair of noisy idiots…" Mr. 5 sighed.

"Broggy! Dorry!" Vivi cried.

"KYAHAHAHA! What idiots they are!" Ms. Valentine laughed.

"I may have underestimate their intelligence a bit too much…" Mr. 3 stated grimly, "To think for one to play dead… Looks like I have to make double sure to restraint them both well." His body starts to… sweat out wax, okay Devil Fruit powers are strange as all heck, "Doru-Doru Arts: Sword!" From the wax is formed a large pure-white sword that stabs into Broggy's hands.

"Broggy!" Nami cried as we saw few more swords stabs into his other limbs as well.

"You bastards!" I cried.

"Move any of your limbs and they will be torn off!" He laughed, "And now, you!" He then stabs it the same way for Dorry, the giant grunting in pain as it goes through his limbs.

"Dorry!" Vivi cried, "How could you do this, you vicious bastards?!"

"Speed up, my Candle Service!" Mr. 3 shouted, "Hurry up and turn them all into wax-figures!"

And with his command, I hear the turning of the pumpkin head speeds up as more melted wax falls on us. I held my breath as I hear Nami and Vivi coughed and choke, I wiggled a little of my toes to check something- my toes…? I slowly moved some of my toes, I came to a realization.

My feet aren't sealed in completely! I can get out! They must have failed to take this into account! Talk about a lucky break!

"FUAHAHAHAHA! Yes, yes! Suffer as much as you can until you die!" Mr. 3 laughed, "Your expression of pain and anguish is the art I seek! Harden away into a wax of terror!"

"ART?! You're depraved!" Nami shouted at him, "How could you do such inhumane thing to Broggy?! Just wait! You all will get your just deserts soon enough!"

"FUAHAHAHAHA! Yes, scream in desperation as much as you want!" Mr. 3 laughed.

"Zoro! Don't just stand there, do something!" She cried.

I held my breath as tight as I could. The wax is definitely covering parts of my shoulder and head now, I feel a slight stiffness on my neck. But I can still move. I'm sure none of the wax has entered me through my nose and mouth, but holding my breath is getting harder by the second.

"Can you still move, giant?" Zoro asked suddenly, "Tearing off your arms and legs will be a lot more useful than being dead. I can still move, so can Rein. Once I cut off my legs, would you like to help me crush these bastards?"

"Y-Your feet?!" Nami cried, "You're going to cut off your feet? What, are you mad?! What do you think you're saying in a time like this?!"

"It's because we're in a time like this that I'm saying it." He tells her, "What? You want to do it too?"

"How could you even ask that, Mr. Bushido?!" Vivi cried, "Even if we were to do that and get down from here, they'd catch us again in an instant!"

"Can't know until you try, y'know?" He stated, "Standing here is only going to bring us certain death. Might as well go down and painfully struggle down to our last breath. There's no reason to die quietly at the hands of these weaklings, am I right?"

"What are you talking about…?" Mr. 5 muttered, "Have they lost it?"

"Hmph, of course he's not serious, can you see?" Mr. 3 chuckled, "There's no way he could ever do such a thing! It's nothing more than a bluff!"

Timing… wait for an opening…

"GABABABABABA!" Broggy laughed, getting their attention, "What a bold little man you are! Even _I_ was on the verge of losing my will to fight. I'll gladly follow along, with that spirit of yours!"

"W-Wha…?"

"Count me in!" Dorry shouted.

"Y-You're joking right?!" Nami shouted at him, "How you expect to fight without both of your legs?!"

"Who knows." Zoro stated, "But I plan to WIN."

"T-They're insane?!" Mr. 5 cried.

"What's with these fools?!" Mr. 3 cried.

"W-Wait for me!" Vivi suddenly cried, "I'll fight too!"

"Sure thing."

"VIVI?!"

Wait for it… come on…

"Then let's DO THIS!" Broggy shouted.

"With you there!" Dorry added in.

"I-I don't know what you think you can accomplish, but I'll just have to kill you all!"

Come on… show me an opening-

"ORYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

I paused as we saw three people, two guys and a duck, came bursting out of the woods screaming at the top of their lungs. "GET READY TO GET YOUR ASSES KICKED!" And then they flew passed the BW agents and crashes into another set of trees opposite of them.

"W-What…?"

"Let's do this," Luffy shouted, "Usopp, bird!"

"Roger!"

"Quack!"

"Luffy! Usopp! Carue!" Nami cried.

"Master Broggy! We came to avenge your agony!" Usopp declared.

"Usopp…!"

"So you came, boy…" Dorry muttered out.

"Beat those losers face into unrecognizable pulp and send them flying as far away as possible!" Nami cried.

"That's what I plan to do!" Luffy stated angrily, "These bastards defiled the giant's duel!"

"Ah, so you're the one they call East Blue's most wanted man…" Mr. 3 stated, "Seems like the Marine HQ's standards has dropped quite a bit."

NOW!

I pulled hard as I slipped out of my boots and leaped down the wax-cake, ignoring the cries from my other crewmates and draws out Raitou. The very moment I lands on the grass, I charged at Mr. 3 immediately as I swings at him.

It looks like they aren't the top agents just in name, as Ms. Valentine of all people manages to block my sword with her umbrella.

"Looks like you didn't check properly, Mr. 5." She stated.

"She slips out of her boots?!" Mr. 3 cried.

"Oh! Rein!" Luffy stated in surprise.

"Hey, captain. Been waiting for you!" I smirked.

"Wait, you can get out this entire time?!" Nami shouted at me, "Why didn't you do that so sooner?!"

"If I do, I'll just get pressed down back there again!" I tells her as I pulled back from the kilo-woman, "But now…"

"Whoa! What a weird head!"

"Quiet!"

"It's a 3! The 3 is on fire!"

"I said shut up!"

"With Luffy here, this fight just got settled." I stated, "Luffy! Destroy that pumpkin head quickly!"

"Huh? Are they in trouble?" He asked me.

"Not right now, but they will be in the next minute or so!"

"Nah, she's just exaggerating." Zoro tells him.

"W-Wait a minute! Your legs are bleeding!" Nami cried.

"Yeah, I was about half-way done cutting them. Hahaha…"

"HOW IS THAT NOT BEING IN TROUBLE?!"

"Well, in any case, could you destroy that pumpkin for us?" Zoro asked, "I'll leave the rest to you."

"Sure thing!" Luffy smirked.

"Hmph, we'll see about that, won't we?" Mr. 3 smirked.

"I'll take care of the underlings for you." I stated with a smirk.

"Underlings, you say?" Mr. 5 stated, "I find that comment to be a little insulting."

"Do you really think you can take care of both of us?" Ms. Valentine says with a nasty grin, "Little girl?"

"Won't know till I try, right?"

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **And yes! About most of Little Garden is almost finished! All that's left is the climax battle against Mr. 3 and we'll be done with this island.**

 **So, what do you think about the little anime-filler part I added in. I thought it would be interesting to add that in as some sort of extender for this chapter. So Suiren is going to appear in the future. Look forward to that!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	13. Ch 13:The spear of Elbaf

**Chapter 13: The spear of Elbaf.**

* * *

I stood ready as in front of the lowest officer agents, trying not to think too much on how to do this. I need to strategize against them, I'm not some powerhouse like Sanji, Zoro or Luffy. I need to fight smart to win… First, their abilities…

Mr. 5 is a bomb-man, with the ability able to create explosions with any part of his body, that means even his breath is an explosive… in the manga, he uses a unique revolver with it to form exploding bullets out of thin air.

Ms. Valentine is a kilo-woman, with the ability to change her weight at will. The heaviest she have is 10 000kilo if I recall correctly, but she definitely can make herself heavier, and the lightest is at 1 kg… I need make sure she doesn't get the drop on me, literally.

Second, their combat style… they are the perfect pair in terms of fighting. Mr. 5 would create an explosion that sends Ms. Valentine up into the air before she slams down on their opponent. Come to think of it, didn't she has that unique dash from that one fanfic-

"1 Kilo Lariat!"

I quickly ducked under her speedy strike, and dashes right towards Mr. 5. He needs to go down first! I have no real defense against an exploding man so it's better if I take him down now before he can do some real damage to me.

"Not the brightest move, lady." Mr. 5 stated as he folds up his sleeve.

"Dragon-Sword Style: Tail Strike!" I stabs forward towards him, he swayed to the side to dodge it as he raises his hand up to slams at me, "To… Tail Whip!" I stepped my foot forwards to form a stance for me to swing my sword at his abdomen.

I felt some resistance when I swung through, Mr. 5 stepped back a little as a small gash on his clothes is visible. I smirked at the small victory, twice did I hurt him somewhat. That's worth something, right?

"GUM-GUM… HAMMER!"

I hear the destruction of something in the background, might be the pumpkin, or the pillar-

"10 000 Kilo Press!"

I barely had time to move out of the way when Ms. Valentine plummets onto the ground right where I was standing. Once that is done, I turned to Mr. 5 who is pulling his hand out of his nose-SHIT!

"Nose Fancy Cannon!"

I leaped out of the way of the explosive booger that exploded right where I stood. "1 Kilo Arrow!" I barely had enough time to put up my sword to guard against a stab from his partner's umbrella as she blasted at me at top speeds.

I was pushed back and my sword parried from the force of that stab, before I was kicked in the gut by her as it sends me back and falling onto the ground on my back.

"10 000 Kilo Press!"

I roll out of the way of the attack as I get back up on my feet with my sword poise and ready. Ms. Valentine walked up to me with a smirk, "Gotta give you credit, you are good." She stated, "But we're better."

"Yeah, we'll see about that…" I stated returning a grin at her.

"Special Attack: Flame Star!"

I saw Usopp fired a fire shot right at Mr. 3, in which Mr. 5 moved in front of him and swallowed the bullet. Smoke comes out of his mouth and nose a little as he burps out a large puff of smoke, "Not bad, never tried a fire bullet before."

"He ate my Flame Star?!" Usopp cried.

"Ms. Valentine, I leave that girl to you." He tells his partner.

"No problem." She stated with a smirk as she poised her umbrella like a weapon towards me.

"AHHHH!" Usopp suddenly board Carue and they together start running away as Mr. 5 starts chasing after them.

"…Usopp, you idiot…" I mumbled.

"GUM-GUM BAZOOKA!"

"Candle Wall!"

I glanced to my side to see Luffy hitting the wax wall with no effect. Damn it! I need to end this fight fast!

"Don't look away now!" Ms. Valentine shouted as she charges at me, I barely got time to block her strike. She then followed up with a few swings at me, I blocking them as much as I could before stepping back and readying my sword.

"Dragon-Sword Style: Charging Horn!" I charges forward with my sword tip facing to my side slightly angled forward and blade parallel to the ground with edge pointing outwards. When the two of us clashes with each other, I pushed hard and knocks the umbrella to the side.

"Returning Horn!" I slashes back at her, but misses as she dodged under my swing and kicks at my leg that causes me to trip onto my back again.

"Time to die! 10 000 Kilo Spike!" She jumps up and plummets down right at me, leg extended downwards. I quickly rolled to the side as the attack strikes the ground before getting back up on my feet.

"GUM-GUM HAMMER!"

I stopped to see Luffy not hit the Candle Wall that Mr. 3 conjure up and instead aimed straight at the pumpkin, breaking it into pieces instantly.

"ALRIGHT!" Nami and Vivi cheered.

"My Candle Set!" Mr. 3 cried.

"Ha! Take that, 3!" Luffy laughed, "And now, your turn! GUM-GUM…!"

"C-Candle-"

"RIFLE!"

With a spinning punch, he sends Mr. 3 flying into the air spinning before disappearing into the forest.

"No way…" I hear Ms. Valentine said in shock, "That Mr. 3 is…"

I then notices a young girl, Ms. Golden Week walking up to him with paintbrush at hand and mixing some paint on her palette-CRAP! "Luffy! Look out!"

"Colors Trap: Betrayal Black."

Luffy manages to dodge the brush stroke from her as he leaped back. "Damn, that was close! What is she trying to do with a brush?"

"Luffy! Don't let her paint touch you!" Vivi called out, "She is a realist painter who can portray even the color of emotions, with the capability of suggestion via her paints!"

"HAHAHAHAHA!"

Luffy suddenly starts rolling around laughing his head off, a yellow mark made visible on his vest.

"Colors Trap: Laughing Yellow."

"We just warned you, you dumbass!" Nami, Zoro and Vivi shouted.

"Damn it, Luffy!"

"Quit looking away!" I pulls up my sword to block a swing from Ms. Valentine's umbrella, "Are you underestimating me or what?!"

"That did cross my mind at one point." I tells her with a grin.

"You BITCH!" She screamed as she kicked me in the gut, knocking me on my back again. What is with her and knocking me down?! "10 000 Kilo Spike!" She then plummets from the skies and strike where I was when I rolled to the side to dodge it.

Okay, this is getting repetitive fast! Does she has any other form of strikes besides that press or spike?

"1 Kilo Arrow!"

I dodges the stab from her and decides to try one thing out. That one special technique that can one-hit-kill any opponent. But I need space, and to aim it well. Plus I've never tried it on a moving target before.

I then saw Usopp and Carue ran passed Luffy and me, "What are you doing, you idiot?!" and smudging the paint off his shirt along the way, "Oh hey, the pumpkin is gone!" He stated.

"Then hurry and get us out of here!" Zoro shouted.

"Breeze Breath Bomb!"

An explosion hits Usopp hard, he toppling off Carue as the two of them stumbles onto the ground smoking. "Damn it, that guy can blow up anything with just his breath!" He cried.

"Damn, you're taking a long time, Ms. Valentine." Mr. 5 tells her.

"Shut up! She's tougher than I thought!" Ms. Valentine tells him back.

"Usopp! Burn that wax-cake to the ground!" I shouted at him, "Don't you have some kind of ammunition for that?!"

"WHAT?!" Nami and Vivi shouted at me, "Are you crazy, the fire will burn us too!"

"Nah, you'll be fine!"

"Like I'll let any of you burn down my Candle Set!" Mr. 3 shouted as he suddenly reappeared from the forest in his candle armor, "Attack! Candle Champion!"

"What's that?!" Usopp cried.

"That's…!" Vivi cried out in shock, "The special art piece Mr. 3 once used to take down a criminal worth 42 million beri!"

"42 million?!" Nami cried, "That's higher than Luffy's!"

"Now then, Ms. Golden Week, please apply a coat of paint on this! And do it as artistically as possible!" He tells her.

"Does he really have to paint that thing?" I asked.

"So COOL!"

"DON'T ADMIRE IT!" We all screamed at our captain.

"Alright! Painting complete!" Mr. 3 stated with his now colored armor, "Now then, time to die!" He then charges straight at Luffy with his wax fists ready to strike him down. Our captain naturally dodges it and retaliate with a stomp to the face, which was blocked by him.

As their fight carries on into the woods, I returned my attention to Ms. Valentine. I stood ready as I saw her and Mr. 5 ready to fight. "Usopp, prepare to light that thing up! I'll handle this two!"

"Are you sure?!" He asked me.

"Yeah, they haven't even laid a finger on me!"

"Hey! I kicked you down a few times, you know!" Ms. Valentine shouted.

"And they hardly tickled!" I shouted at her.

"Don't try to provoke the assassin, Rein!" Nami cried.

"Alright, if you can handle it!" Usopp nodded as he ran off rummaging in his pouch for something.

"Damn that bitch, underestimating us!" She shouted.

"Let's get rid of her and deal with that long nose coward." Mr. 5 stated as he aimed his gun at me.

"Oh, crap-"

"Breeze Breath Bomb!" He fired at me, I barely dodged it as the explosion went off behind me. I fell onto the ground hard, I feeling my back burned slightly from it.

"10 000 Kilo Press!" I then felt a heavy object slams onto my back hard, I felt my spine nearly cracking under the pressure as I coughed out in pain. I tasted the iron in my mouth as I felt the blood dripping out of the corner of my lips.

"Rein!" Nami cried.

"Ha! Not so tough now, are you?" Ms. Valentine laughed as she steps in front of me.

"…Yeah, I guess not." I smirked, before swinging my blade fast enough at her shins, cutting just deep enough to draw blood. She cries out in pain as she collapses onto the ground, giving me the opportunity to get back up and punch her in the face hard, breaking her nose.

"Ms. Valentine! Damn you!" Mr. 5 shouted as he fires his gun at me. I grabbed onto his partner by her jacket, ignoring her cries and pulls her up in front of me and in the way of the explosive breath bullet, it explodes on her instead, knocking her unconscious with smoke coming out of her mouth.

"Ah, Ms. Valentine!"

"Special Attack: Gunpowder Star!"

Mr. 5 then looked at the ammo coming at him and swallows it, "Thanks for the meal, idiot."

"Ha! You think so?" Usopp asked with a smirk.

I saw Mr. 5's face twitches a little as he definitely felt what he meant.

"Sorry, but that was a lie. That wasn't gunpowder. It was my special Tabasco Star!"

"AGGHHH! SO HOOOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTT!" I watched as a literal pillar of flame erupted from his mouth. Damn, that must has been really spicy–Wait, I could use this chance!

"Let's try it out…" I muttered as I ready my sword, I slightly bent forward with my sword wielding arm across my chest, my other arm tucked in behind it with my wrist on the inside of my elbow.

"You… *HACK* you damn pirates!" Mr. 5 shouted as he charges at us, "I'll blow you all away with my full-body explosion!"

"Dragon-Sword Style, Secret Art:" I then dashes forward at him, "Dragon Flash!" I then swung as hard as I could when I flicked my wrist at my elbow, increasing my strike's speed which worked as I cuts Mr. 5 down by his gut.

I turned around as I saw him on the floor bleeding a pool of blood. He is done! Haha! I defeated a BW agent!

"Yeah-GACK!" I flinched as I felt the burns on my back, my jacket definitely burned through.

"Yeah, yeah, you're awesome, but can you get us out of here?!" Zoro shouted at us, "It's not fun just stuck like this!"

"We agree!" Broggy and Dorry shouted as well.

"Alright, alright, no need to get mad at us." I groaned, "Usopp, you done?"

"All finished!" Usopp laughed as he pointed at the rope tied around the wax structure, Carue running back down it back to us. Our sniper pulls back his slingshot, "Flame Star!" He then fires the flaming bullet that hits the rope, which in turn ignites and creating a giant inferno.

"M-My Candle Set!" We heard Mr. 3 cried as we saw Luffy dragging Mr. 3 by the hair back into the clearing.

"And in you go!" He then tossed the agent into the fire, melting the armor in the process.

"Hothothothothot!" He screamed he ran out without his melted armor, "Damn you, Straw Hat!"

"Burning Oni Giri!" I then witness Zoro dashes out of the flames with his bandana on and swords drawn as he slashes right at him, burning the agent up as he collapsed onto the ground unconscious. "Huh… burning swords ain't half-bad."

"Wait till you see- OW!" I felt two thing knocks on my head hard.

"Rein, you asshole!" Nami shouted at me, "What would happen if we have burned alive!"

"You'll fine, aren't you?!" I shouted at her, before noticing her current attire, shirt completely burnt off leaving her with just a black bra. She lack real volume, but the shape is nic-Wait! Stop! Don't think too much!

"Why are you blushing, Rein?" Zoro asked.

"Ah! N-No reason!"

"I still can't believe we're alive…" Vivi stated in shock.

"We all are." Broggy said as he gotten back up with Dorry as well. He then turns to his friend, "Sorry for not fighting seriously, my friend. I can't knowing that the duel was rigged."

"No, it's alright." Dorry stated, "I understand." He then turns to Luffy, "Sorry I accused your friends, little one."

"Nah, its fine!" Luffy laughed.

"But to think our bounties are still relevant till this day! GABABABABA!" Broggy laughed, "I remembered when I got it first-"

"What are you talking about, Broggy?" Dorry asked, "I was the one that got a bounty first."

"No, it was me."

"No, me, I remember that day clearly! We had a heck of a party to celebrate it!"

"No I had it first! It was my party! You were pissed drunk from it too!"

"What, you wanna fight?!"

"Yeah, you?!"

"WHY ARE YOU FIGHTING AGAIN?!" Nami screamed at them.

"Leave them be, they are just idiots like that…" I sighed.

* * *

A few quick moments later, we moved to Dorry's side of the island where we patched up our wounded, me included. I didn't have any outward-looking injuries but there have been internal injuries from that press attack.

"We owe you our thanks, little ones!" Broggy stated, "If there's anything we can do to repay you, let us know."

"But even so… those agents came to this island because of me…" Vivi stated sadly, "If I hadn't come here…"

"Stop with that frown already!" Nami stated as she pinched her cheeks.

"Yeah, why the long face?" I asked her as I chewed on some rice crackers which I assume was Ms. Golden Week's. Not even going to question where they found it, "It's not like they came because of you alone. Luffy, Zoro, Nami and I are on their hit lists as well."

"See, nobody here blames you for anything." She tells her.

"Alright! Time for a cracker party!" Luffy cheered.

"How are we going to have a cracker party, anyway?" I asked.

"Yeah, a cracker party ain't that interesting you know." Usopp chimed in.

"But we're in serious trouble if we have to wait a full year for the Log to record." Zoro stated.

"Exactly! This is no laughing matter." Nami nodded.

"Can't you misters do something about that?" Luffy asked the two giants.

"Don't be ridiculous. Even we can't do a thing about the Logs." Dorry explained, "But we do have an Eternal Post. It's pointing at our homeland of Elbaf, though…"

"But that's not our destination, though…" Vivi stated.

"Don't worry! The solution will come to us soon." I tells them as I finished up my cracker.

"Solution…?"

"HEEELLLLOOOOOOOOOOO!" We hear Sanji's voice echoed through the forest as we saw him running towards us in his love-typhoon, "Nami-swan! Vivi-chwan! Rein-chwan! And the rest! Thank god ya'll safe~!"

"Oh, Sanji!" Luffy greeted.

"He shows up NOW?!" Usopp cried angrily.

"WHA-?!" He skids to a stop when he saw the giants, "THE HELL IS THAT?! Are you Mr. 3?!"

"Huh? How do you know about Mr. 3?" Nami asked.

"OH MY~! As electrifying as always, Nami-swan~!" He cooed.

"Less ogling, more information!" I shouted at him.

"Gak! Rein-chan, what happened to you?!" He suddenly cried, probably talking about the bandages around my chest and waist and my lack of swimwear and jacket, "But… I like it either way~!"

"Just tell us, already!"

* * *

"So then, just a moment ago, you were talking with Mr. 0?!" Vivi cried.

"Yeah, I guess." Sanji stated, "It seems to me that he mistaken me for Mr. 3."

"And now he thinks that we're all dead?!"

"Yeah. Or at least, that's what I told him."

"Just when we FINALLY throw off our pursuers, we can't even step a FOOT off this island!" Usopp cried.

"Huh? We still have unfinished business here or something?" The blonde cook asked, "I mean, I managed to get this from them and all…" And he produced from his pocket an Eternal Pose, with the word Alabasta engraved on it.

"…?!"

"…?!"

"…?!"

"…Huh? What?"

"Told you." I stated with a grin.

"An Eternal Pose to Alabasta!" Everyone cheered.

"We can finally set sail!" Luffy cheered.

"Thank you so much, Sanji!" Vivi cheered as she hugged the blonde cook, "I was so worried over what to do!"

"Y-You're w-welcome…~ I didn't think it'll make you this happy…~"

"Alright, everyone! Time for a cracker party!" Luffy declared.

"Luffy, it ain't going to be much of a party with just three crackers left!" Usopp stated.

"And it isn't the time for that." Nami tells him, "It's time to set sail, captain! We can't just loiter around here forever!"

"Ah, that's right. You haven't forgotten about our hunting contest, have you?" Sanji asked.

"Hm? Oh, I'm sure I won that." Zoro stated, "I caught a rhino about thiiiiiis big."

"A rhino?! Can you even eat that?!"

"Sure you can!" I stated happily, "It's still meat!"

"Alright then, Mr. Round, Mr. Giant!" Luffy greeted, "We'll be taking off now!"

"I see… busy little buggers, aren'cha?" Broggy chuckled.

"It's a shame, but we won't ask you to stay any longer." Dorry stated, "I hope your country's safe, girl."

"Thank you." Vivi bowed to them.

"See ya then! Don't die anymore!"

"Master! I'll go to Elbaf for sure one day!" Usopp declared.

"Broggy! Dorry! See you all someday!" I called out.

Soon, we entered the forest and returned to our ship.

* * *

"Look! My lizard is CLEARLY bigger!"

"Are your eyes just for show or something?! My rhino is DEFINITELY bigger!"

I groaned slightly as I watch the two of them bickered back and forth over which is bigger. They have been at this for a whole minute now, "Who cares? They both look pretty tasty to me." Luffy stated.

"You stay out of this!" They shouted at our captain.

"Come on, cut it out!" I shouted, "Look, they are the same size, the amount of meat they have are the same so there! It's a goddamn draw, so deal with it!"

"I refuse!" Zoro shouted, "There's never a draw in a contest!"

"If that's your wish~!" Sanji cooed.

"Let's just cut those up and store what we can." I added, before showing them a large bundle of wild vegetables and mushrooms I managed to forage along the way, "With these, we're set for about a month!"

"Or a week, considering Luffy's appetite…" Usopp pointed out.

"…Now that I think about it…" I ran into the cabin, before taking out one of the spare rucksack Sen left me in my own rucksack. If what I think is correct… "Hey, trying storing all the meat into this."

"Why? There's hardly enough space in there!" Zoro stated.

As a demonstration, I lift the bag above my head, and let it fall onto me down to my legs. I wait a few seconds, I pull up and saw all of their pale faces meaning what I just thought was correct.

"What kind of bag is that?" Vivi asked.

"Dunno, Sen and I use the same one in our travels." I stated, "I just boil it down to Grand Line bullshit."

"Damn, with this, we can store a lot of things at once!" Sanji stated, "But wait, won't the weight push the boat down more?"

"Nah, the weight doesn't change much." I explained, "I saw Sen dropped a small hill of items from one of his sacks one time."

"Where does he even get that kind of bag?" Usopp asked, "But that would handy! Think you can spare a few bags for storage use?"

"Sure! He left me like ten, so go ahead!"

After cutting up the two dinosaurs and storing them into the bag, we set sail. According to Nami, we should be able to reach open waters if we sail along the river. And once we reach the mouth of the river, we saw our two giant friends waiting there for us.

"Think they came to see us off?" Usopp wonders.

"The most important reason why all the little ones who come to this island," Broggy stated.

"Do not reach the next island lies straight ahead." Dorry ended.

"You all risked your lives so that our pride can remain untarnished."

"Thus, in return, no matter the foe…"

"We must not let your flag of pride be tarnished either!"

"Trust in us and sail straight ahead! No matter what happens, sail only straight ahead!"

"What're they…?" Zoro wonders.

"Got it! Sail straight ahead!" Luffy nodded.

"Farewell. Let us meet again."

"One day in the future!"

"Ah! Look up ahead!"

We followed Nami's finger and saw the waters starting to bulge up from below, a pair of eyes visible under the surface. Soon, the entire thing rises up from the ocean depths to reveal an extremely gigantic goldfish, almost the size of the island behind us. Oh wait… I knew something was missing…

"W-What is that thing?!" Sanji cried, "Is it a Sea King?!"

"Rein! Did you know about this?!" Nami asked me.

"Ah, right, I knew I was forgetting something…" I nervously chuckles, "Oops…?"

"Oops ain't going to cut it!" She cried, "Quick! Someone grab the helm or we're going to be swallowed alive!"

"W-What in the world is that? A giant g-goldfish…?" Usopp stuttered shakily, "Huh? Goldfish? Where did I heard that one before…?"

"Usopp! Hurry!"

"N-No! I won't!" He tells our navigator firmly, if a little shakily, "We'll going straight ahead, r-right, Luffy?"

"Yup, you bet." Luffy nodded.

"Don't be ridiculous!" She shouted at them, "This is completely different than getting swallowed by Laboon!"

"Yeah, yeah, pipe down already." Our captain tells her, "Here. I'll even give you the last rice cracker."

"I don't need any crackers!" She cried, "If we don't turn this ship around this instant, we'll–!"

"Give it up, Nami." Zoro tells her, "You know how he is."

"Mmgghh…!"

"Luffy! You sure those giants are trust-worthy, right?!" Sanji asked.

"Yup."

"Are you serious?!" Vivi cried out, "We're really going to sail straight into that monster?!"

"Oh no! It's too late to do anything now!" Nami cried.

"Just trust in them!" I shouted.

I looked around as I saw the jaws of the closed in around us, the light of day soon disappearing into pure darkness. I can't hardly see anything in front of my nose.

"STRAIGHT AHEAD! STRAIGHT AHEAD! G-GO STRAIGHT AHEAD!"

"What are you screaming for?! We've already been swallowed!" Nami shouted at our sniper.

"Straight ahead! Straight ahead!" Luffy joined in.

I held my breath as I silently prayed for whatever it is going to happen, please happen soon!

"HAKOKU!"

Within seconds, light reappeared as a huge gust of wind burst through, piercing what I presume is the fish as we are jetted out of it. "Woohoo! We're flying!" Luffy cheered. "Don't turn back now! Fly straight ahead!"

"They cut… the ocean itself…!" Usopp sobbed in awe, "So this is…*SNIFF* the power of Elbaf's warriors…!"

"ABSOLUTELY STUNNING!"

I too was taken in awe by the moment. It was as if even the wind became their weapon.

As I thought, Giants are awesome as heck!

* * *

A few hours of sailing later, Little Garden is nowhere to be seen over the horizon. I retired into the cabin to write in the logbook about our adventure on the dinosaur island. As I wrote down every little thing I recalled, I thought about what happened back on that island.

Despite my own warnings, we were still captured by Mr. 3 and nearly turned into a wax-statue. It was a lucky break that they didn't check my boots and I manages to escape it. From now on, I need to be more careful with my warnings.

My luck is going to run out sooner or later.

And I need to get stronger. Maybe I can get Zoro's help with some the techniques I still have trouble with… I think I still have the book Sen left me in my bag.

When I just finished my entry, the door to the cabin was knocked opened to my surprise as I saw Sanji and Vivi rushed in with Nami on the cook's arms.

"What's the matter?"

"Nami has a high fever!" Vivi cried.

"WHAT?!" I quickly went over to them as Sanji places her down on the bed gently.

Crap. I forgotten about this…

* * *

 _To be continued…_

 **And done! Another chapter finished! Man, this was a blast! I hope the fight scene isn't boring. And thanks for the review,** chaosrin **. I'll try to keep in mind about the how to change some of the things in the future.**

 **Honestly, I did change some things, but this is too early to say. I mean, they just entered in the Grand Line and all. Maybe further down the road.**

 **And Rein's past, huh? I'll see how to put it in.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	14. Ch 14:Drum Kingdom

**Chapter 14: Drum Kingdom**

* * *

"Iz nabi gunna die?! Well?! Iz she Bibi?!" Sanji sobbed.

"It must be from the climate change…" Vivi stated, "The one obstacle that all sailors who entered the Grand Line will into sooner or later is sickness caused by the abnormal climate. No matter how infamous or strong a pirate, dying helplessly from an illness is a common occurrence here in the Grand Line. Even the slightest symptoms can lead to death if ignored."

I looked at Nami as guilt filled my heart. Why didn't I remember this part sooner?! I could have prevented it! Damn it! What's the point of my knowledge if this happens anyway?!

"Isn't there anyone here on this ship with some medical knowledge?"

I don't need to see them pointing at just Nami.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll get better if she just eats some meat!" Luffy stated.

"It doesn't work that way, Luffy." I tells him, "Just giving a sick person nutrition isn't going to cure her."

"Rein-chan's right. That's going as far as nursing, but curing her isn't going to happen that way." The blonde cook sighed, "In the first place, when it comes to preparing food for Nami-san, Vivi-chan and Rein-chan, I put in 100 times more effort than the rest of you lot."

"I only use the freshest ingredients to cook a perfectly balanced meal for them. And the leftover scraps and expiring ingredients are given to you guys."

"OI!"

"It still taste delicious though!"

"In any case, as long as I'm the chef on this ship, there won't be any troubles related to malnutrition or such." He explained, "So if someone is sick, then that's because of a different illness. And unless I know what that is, I won't know what type of meat to prepare would be the best either…"

"Couldn't you just eat everything then?"

"Not having energy to even eat is what being sick meant, you idiot…"

"Oh right! We might be able to find out the illness!" Usopp then turned to me, "Hey, Rein! This must have happened in our story, right?! Was the name of the illness on there too?!"

"…I…" My mind is at a blank, I couldn't think. No! What was it?! Think! Goddamn it THINK!

"Rein!"

"I don't know!" I cried, I felt tears flowing down my face, "I don't know… Damn it… I know Nami got sick after Little Garden but… I don't know what caused it… I'm sorry… I'm sorry…"

"Its fine, Rein." Vivi tells me, "It's not like you can remember every single thing that is going to happen, right? No need to be hard on yourself."

"B-B-But…"

"Relax, Nami would get better!" Luffy laughed happily.

"Why would you think that?!" Sanji shouted.

"I mean, did Rein says that she died after this?"

"…"

"…"

Everyone all looked at me, I quickly wiped my tears, "N-No! She's live! I know she will! After this, we went to an island that is known for their medical prowess and cured her! And we got a doctor too!"

"Hey! No spoilers!" Luffy cried.

"Ah! S-Sorry, captain…"

"If it's medical prowess, you might be talking about Drum Kingdom…" Vivi stated, "They are known for their cutting-edge in medical science and research on all of the Grand Line."

"Then there's where we need to go right away." Sanji stated.

"Alright then! Let's set sail for Drum Kingdom!" Luffy declared.

"…no…"

We all turned to Nami, who is getting up from her bed, still looking feverish.

"N-Nami?"

"Yay! She gotten better!" Our captain cheered.

"No, she hadn't!" Usopp slapped his head in retort.

"There's a newspaper on top of my desk…" She tells us. Vivi then walked to the desk where I was originally writing the logbook, where she picks up a newspaper from it. Weird, did I missed that?

When she opens it up to the front page, her eyes widen in shock, "W-Wha-?!"

"What is it, Vivi?" Luffy asked.

"Is it about Alabasta?" Sanji added.

"That can't be… 300 000 soldiers of the Royal Army switched sides to join the rebels?!" She stated in shock, "Originally, the 600 000 strong Royal Army could contain the rebels who were only 400 000 strong… but now, the situation is the exact opposite!"

"…with that, the situation in Alabasta has entered its most critical phase…" Nami panted out, "And that paper was from 3 days ago. Sorry for not showing it to you until now. I didn't want to worry you any further since we were already sailing as fast as we could."

"Understand, Luffy?"

"Sounds like an emergency." Luffy nodded.

"That's right. I'm surprised I managed to get through to you so well."

"But if we don't get you to a doctor soon…" Usopp pointed out.

"It's fine. This fever isn't really as bad as you people make it to be…" She stated as she slowly get out of bed, "I'm sure I just caught a heatstroke or something. I'll just get better on my own without seeing a doctor."

"B-But Rein said-"

"Even information can be wrong." She pointed out, "Rein forgotten a lot of things, didn't she? Maybe she misremembered this part."

"N-Nami-"

"In any case, we'll continue to head towards Alabasta as planned for now." She stated, "But thanks for worrying about me."

"No problem." Luffy stated as we watch her leave the cabin, "She's not better, is she?"

"She's just putting up a brave front…" Usopp stated.

"…If I can't stop this, then it's over for Alabasta…! It'll be taken over by Crocodile!" Vivi stated, "It's not good enough to just return alive anymore… If I can't get back soon, then a million of my people will be killing each other for no reason!"

"There's a million people there?!" Luffy cried.

"That's quite a burden." Sanji pointed out.

"But we can't move fast if Nami is sick." I tells her, "Nami is our navigator, and we need her to be on top condition before we can do anything else."

"That's true…" Usopp nodded.

"Hey, all of you!" Zoro called out from the deck, "We've got work to do, so come out!"

We all complied as we ran out of the cabin, "Take the helm and steer for south."

"What, I don't feel like taking orders from you ." Sanji huffed at the swordsman.

"Just shut up and do it!" He shouted, "Also, lower the sails so we can catch wind from portside."

"Got it!" Usopp stated as he ran to climb the ropes.

"What is it, Nami-san? The seas are calm and the weather looks clear to me" Sanji stated.

"I have a feeling… that there's going to be a strong wind up ahead." She stated.

I then saw Luffy walked to her and placed his hand on her forehead, "HHHOOT! Hot! We really need to take you to a doctor right away!"

"That's just my normal temperature!" Nami cried, "Now stop wasting time and get the ropes!"

"Nami-san, I know this is for Vivi-chan's sake but you shouldn't be pushing yourself too much…"

"I told you, I'm fine!"

"Nami, I think you oughta-"

"Just be quiet and turn the ship around already!" She shouted at the sniper.

"Nami!" I shouted as I walked up to her and placed my hands on her shoulders, "I know what I remember, and I know I forgot to mention things at certain times but this is different! You are sick! And we need to get you to a doctor-"

"I'm fine! How many times I have to say it?!"

"You're not fine, Nami!" I screamed, "There are times we have to bear our teeth and carry on, but this is different! If your sickness isn't cured anytime soon, you'll die!"

"Your information was never helpful at all, why would it be now?!"

I froze when she said that, I let go of her as she walked passed me. I couldn't retort against that. She is right. No matter what I did, I couldn't really change with the plot. Back at Little Garden, I thought I could stop Mr. 3 but I ended up captured.

I… I couldn't do anything…

"I have a request to ask you all." I hear Vivi speak, I noticing her standing on the deck, "I know that it's not my place to make such demands since I'm just a passenger on your ship, but with the emerging crisis in my country, I want to go there as soon as possible."

"Not even a single moment can be spared anymore! That's why, I ask for this ship to head for Alabasta at the fastest speed!"

"Of course! Just like we promised!" Nami nodded.

"Thus, I suggest we followed Rein's information and head to Drum Kingdom immediately."

"H-Huh?!"

"We have to see to it that Nami gets better as fast as possible, and then head for Alabasta! That'll be the only way this ship can sail at the fastest speed, correct?"

"You bet!" Luffy grins, "Can't get any faster than that!"

"But are you sure about that, Vivi?" Usopp asked, "Aren't you worried about the lives of a million Alabastans, being a princess and all?"

"That is exactly why we need to get Nami to a doctor as quickly as possible." She explained.

"Well said, Vivi-chan!" Sanji smiled, "I've fallen for you all over again!"

"I like your guts." Zoro smirked.

"Vivi…" I looked at her with conflicted feelings.

"Rein, your information may not have helped us in any form in the past few days, but it was always correct, right?" She tells me as she held my hand, "Then I'll trust in that. Your information will help us in this, I know it will."

I… was at loss of words… I couldn't… I… I…

"Thank you…" I muttered, tears began flowing again, "Thank you, Vivi…"

"I'm sorry for making you worry…" She tells me, before facing Nami, "Nami, please don't overexert yourself anymore. We'll find a cure for you, I promise."

"Sorry, Vivi…" She panted, "And sorry, Rein… I didn't actually…"

"AHHH! WHAT IS THAAATTT?!"

We all turned around, noticing a large cyclone the size of two islands right behind us. I barely managed to grab Nami before she collapsed, she barely hanging over my shoulders.

"W-Wait a minute… t-that directions was…!" Vivi realized.

"That's exactly where we're heading towards just moment ago!" Sanji stated.

"If we had sailed straight on, we would have crashed directly into it!" Luffy cried, "Talk about a close call!"

"Good thing Nami manages to predict that, right?" I stated.

"I'd never seen such a navigator before…" Vivi muttered.

"Alright! Everyone, let's head towards Drum Kingdom to find a doctor!" Luffy commanded.

"RIGHT!" We all cheered.

"So! Where is it?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

They all turned to me, I nervously gulped as I try to recall how they reached there before, "Let's see… in the book, you all just went southward until you find the island so…"

"Let's all head south!"

"Oi, oi, are you sure that is safe?" Usopp questioned, "Just heading south is a little vague!"

"Sorry, but that's all I know." I sighed, "I wished I can find a proper way there, but that's the extent of my knowledge on this."

"Guess we just have to trust that would work…" Zoro stated.

"Oh! Maybe we can have Zoro give directions to somewhere besides Drum Kingdom! Then we can just go the other direction and reach there quickly!"

"ARE YOU TRYING TO PICK A FIGHT WITH ME, WOMAN?!"

* * *

A full day has passed since the cyclone. We each took shifts to look after Nami, me included. It was pretty standard care, changing the towel on her head, making sure her condition doesn't worsen too much, and wiping her down although that is left to us females.

Sometimes, I wish I still have a male body and this is that one time. It was really awkward to wipe Nami's sweaty naked body down, my eyes just keep wandering where normally a guy would be slapped for looking.

And now, it was my turn to take lookout on the crow's nest in the now snowy weather. I'm wearing a large blanket to cover myself, thought I wore my woolly hoodie under it. I peeked through the binoculars as I tried to see if there's the six pillar-shaped mountains of Drum in sight.

I scanned the ocean, begging to god that it may be on the horizon somewhere. I then saw something.

Or some _one_ to be precise.

"Hey guys!"

"What, you find that Drum whatever?" Luffy asked.

"Drum Kingdom, Luffy." Usopp corrected.

"No. Just… prepare for a fight." I tells them, "For there's a person standing on the ocean in front of us."

"A person standing on the ocean-What the heck are you saying, Rein?!" The sniper shouted at me.

"Then look in front of you."

"Huh?"

I waited for them to answer, I looking at Chess standing on the water all nonchalant-like. I try to spy under his feet, but the falling snow is making it hard to see anything.

"It's cold today, isn't it?"

I hear Chess spoke, then looked even closer at the water. Then an idea sprung.

"Ahem." I cleared my throat for what I'm about to do, "Sorry, are you perhaps one of the people that serves an idiot of a king that ran away from his kingdom to save his own ass and leaving his kingdom to fend for themselves against a pirate attack?"

I saw Chess's eyebrow twitched slightly, before continuing with a smirk, "Because I like to award him with the Humanity Award for letting his tyranny die off. That is the most decent thing as a human being he has ever done in his entire life."

"…You little… you're just a pirate!" He shouted at me.

"Yeah, I know." I then looked down at them, "Whatever happens later, just attack them. Don't let them board! Oh! And Luffy, sends their captain flying when he even came out of his ship. He's the extremely fat one."

"Huh?"

A few moments later, a large metal dome-like ship surfaces out from the water below, shaking the entire ship in the process. The dome then opened up and slides down to below the water before the bow raised up from the water.

"MAHAHAHAHA! Surprised?! Has my submersible ambush-ship, Tin Can King, left you speechless?!"

"Oh crap! A pirate ship!" Usopp cried.

"Okay, guys, remember what I said!?" I shouted as I leaped down from the crow's nest and lands on the deck. A slight ache on my ankles, but nothing broken.

"Yeah! No one gets aboard this ship, right?" Luffy stated with a smirk as he bangs his knuckles together.

"W-Wait a minute here!" Usopp cried.

"Get Zoro and Sanji out of here!" I tells him, "And guard the cabin doors! Do not let anyone get in there!"

"O-Okay! That I can do!" He then dashed into the cabin as fast as he could while I draw Raitou out of its sheath.

The bow's hippo-head opened up and a ladder slides down onto Going Merry's deck, followed by a flood of soldiers-like grunts that descends down the ladder. Luffy took the lead as he starts punching people left and right the moment they touched the deck.

Those that slipped by charge straight at me, I easily dispatched them with a few swings and rush towards the others with sword poised.

A few moments later, there are lot of unconscious and injured goons lying on the ground. I then notices few grunts rushing at me with swords drawn, while another few aiming their rifles at me.

I was about to rush the sword wielded ones, but they were then kicked to the side by own chivalrous cook, "To raise a weapon against a lady, how disgraceful."

A few slashes can be heard as I saw Zoro take down the riflemen easy, "Tch, they are pretty pathetic, aren't they?"

"Thanks for the assist, you two!" I called out.

"Anytime, Rein-chwan~!" Sanji cooed.

"What a bunch of violent pirates!" I hear a loud arrogant voice shout, as we saw a large man stomps onto our deck. The large hippo-liked man called Wapol. Man, calling him fat is an understatement. He is obese! I bet if I tripped him down, I can roll him about like a beach ball!

"Listen here! I'm a king! And kings are to be respected! For I am great!" He shouted.

"So, I just need to blow him away right?" Luffy asked me.

"Huh?"

"Yup. Send him flying!"

"What?"

"GUM-GUM BAZOOKA!" And with that, Wapol is sent flying with that attack, until he is nothing but a flicker in the snowy sky.

"And he's gone!" I laughed.

"WAPOL-SAMA!"

"This is extremely bad! His majesty was flung into the ocean!" I hear Chess cried.

"Crap! And he can't swim either!" His partner, I think his name is something-marimo, shouted.

"Back to the ship everyone! If we don't go rescue him, he'll drown for sure!" And the goons all run up the ladder, as the boat quickly sail away towards where Wapol was sent flying.

"You pirates better watch out! We'll have our revenge on you all one day!"

"Yeah, yeah, see ya, you losers!" I shouted.

And in that moment, I felt a prick on my shoulder. I looked to it, and saw an arrow sticking out of it before the pain finally kicked in as I cried out in pain before leaning on the mast for support.

"Rein!"

"Rein-chan!"

I hear the other guys as they surrounds me, I think I saw Vivi with them, "T-That asshole got me…!" I struggles with the arrow, and with one motion twist and pulls out the arrow, ignoring the pain all together before dropping it on the deck.

I pressed on my wound hard, the pain isn't as bad as it seems to be, "I-I'll live. Just need… some… bandages…" My sight start to become blurry before I lost feelings in my limbs and collapsed onto the ground as darkness took me over.

* * *

"REIN!"

Vivi ran up to the chronicler as she tries to examined the cause of her collapse. Usopp walked up to the arrow, picking up and smelling the arrowhead, and realized in horror, "The arrow's poisoned!"

"WHAT?! So Rein is poisoned?!" Luffy cried.

"Crap! Just when things can't get any worst!" Zoro growled.

"What kind of poison is it?!" Vivi asked.

"I don't know!" The sniper cried, "I know it is poison because of the smell, but I don't know the type!"

"This is bad! Without the antidote, Rein might die in the next few hours or so!" The princess said grimly, "We need to get to Drum Kingdom as quick as we could!"

"The poison just gotten in, right?" Sanji stated, "Then we need to suck out most of it before it circulate! Please allow me to-!"

And without warning, Vivi sucked her mouth onto Rein's wound. Taking care not to swallow, she sucks out the blood before spitting it out. She repeats a few more times before spitting out some more from her mouth.

"…Damn, Vivi, you're gutsy…" Usopp stated.

"With this, she shouldn't be in any immediate danger." The princess stated, "Let's transport her onto the bed."

"Right." Zoro stated as he pulls Rein into his arms in a princess carry. He then notices the positon they are in and chuckles, "Rein is going to kill me if she knows what I did."

"Damn straight! Which why I should be the one-!"

Ignoring the perverted cook, Zoro walked back into the cabin with Vivi. After finding a spare mattress and removing her hoodie, they lay their chronicler on it and covered her with a blanket.

"This idiot, getting poisoned when we already have a sick person on board…" Zoro groaned.

"Let's hope we can find a doctor before the poison kills her…" Vivi stated grimly.

* * *

Everything was dark, my body is hot. I can't feel my limbs, as if I was blocked out of it. My eyelids feel heavy and it's hard to breathe. Damn that Chess asshole, shooting me with a poison arrow of all things! I didn't know he HAS poison arrows!

But that definitely backfired on me… Now I'm probably dying right now.

Damn it! Not how I wanted to go! Not this second life I have! I wanted to see it! Raftel! One Piece! The True History!

Luffy becoming the Pirate King!

Damn it all! Why?! Why do I have to die like this?! WHY?!

But then, I start to feel a little cold, before warm spreads across my body. It starts to feel comfortable. Feelings turned to my limbs and I can breathe normally again.

My eyelids felt lighter too, as I tries to open them. Struggling a little, I manages to open my eyes. I flinched a little from the sudden brightness as my vision starts to clear up.

I found myself staring at a brick ceiling, one coloured in faded white. I moved a bit, noticing the blanket over me as I got up. The snowing weather out the window next to me helped me clicked all the pieces together.

I'm at Drum.

More specifically, at Kureha's Castle…

"Awake now, sleeping beauty?"

I turned towards the voice, Kureha walking up to me in her aged yet somewhat youthful image. Okay, it's like seeing an old lady's face on a young woman's body. The huge difference between the two is really jarring.

"Um…"

"Want to know the secret of my youth?"

"No, not really." I stated, "Just…"

"You are one strange lady, you know that." The witch doctor laughed as she takes a swig from her bottle, "Managing to fight off the Calico for a day, your body's immune system is crazy strong to do that."

"Calico… what?"

"Calico, or known as the Fungus Poison." Kureha explained, "It's normally created by cooking the Amiudake mushroom and then adding some poisonous ferns. It's a deadly poison that kills within hours of its consumption. It first shuts down the motor function immediately before attacking the lungs and heart, shutting it down and killing the victim."

"It's a sure-kill poison if the antidote isn't applied within the next five hours."

And I survived that?! Damn, not sure how my reincarnation changed my body, but I'm glad it did!

But wait, if I'm at the castle that would mean-!

"H-Hey! W-Where's the other people that brought me here?!"

"Oh, your comrades, I assumed?" Kureha chuckles, "They are fine. The two guys I have taken care of, and the lady is still asleep but she should wake up anytime soon. She's just as lucky to be alive like you. Any later, and the Kestia would have killed her.

"Oh, that's what it's called…" I nodded.

"…You're a strange one, alright." She stated, "Normally, an outsider would ask where they are and who I am in panic, but you're too calm. Like you know where you are and who I am before even arriving here."

…Crap.

"So! Who are you?" She asked as she produced a scalpel and points it dangerously at my throat, "Answer me truthfully and I might consider not dissecting you."

I gulped down my spit as I became consciously aware of the sharp blade dangerously close to my throat. What should I do? Tell her the truth, or bluff my way out of it? No, bluffing would do me no good, she would read me like a book!

But how to do tell her the truth? I mean, sure she lived for a long time, but I doubt she meet people from another world on a daily occasion…

"U-Um… it's complicated…?"

"…Well, if you can't really say, I guess there's no helping it…" Kureha withdraw the medical tool as I breathed a sigh of relief, "In anyhow, you need to rest some more. You might be able to move now, but the antidote is still fighting the virus inside of you. You might get a relapse if you're not careful."

"How long do I need to rest?"

"I say about… a week."

"A WEEK?!" I cried, "I can't stay here for a week! I need to go somewhere fast and-!"

I flinched as a scalpel is thrown passed me and stabs into the wall behind me. I felt a small cut as I felt my left cheek, blood colouring my fingertips.

"A week, capice?" She smiled deviously.

"R-Right…"

"Now then, I better go take a look at your other friend." Kureha chuckles as she left the room, leaving me alone on the bed. I sighed as I plonks back on the bed. Okay, if it goes as planned, Wapol will come to this castle and all hell would break loose. In that time…

I hear the door slammed opened as I saw Sanji and Luffy chasing what looks like a bipedal reindeer around the room before running out again, although our captain backtracked next to me, "Oh, Rein! You're okay!"

"Yeah, thanks." I stated with a smile.

"You're awake now, Rein-chwan~?!" Sanji cooed as he approached the bed, "Just wait, I'll cook you up a delicious venison stew!"

"WAIT UP, REINDEEER!"

"COME BACK HERE, MEAT!"

The two of them then rushed out of the room, I felt a sweat dripped down the back of my neck. I sighed a little before falling back to sleep.

* * *

I hear my door opened, waking me up from my slumber. I opened one of my eyes to check, as I saw Chopper entering the room. He silently close the door behind him, I saw him sigh a little before walking towards the desk.

I noticed the sad look in his eyes, and decided to do something. I mean, he's going to join the crew anyways. Might as well give him my first impressions now.

"Hi ther-"

"GYAH!"

And that backfired immediately as the anthropomorphic reindeer backtracked into the shelves, knocking a whole bunch of books burying him under them. Ah… crap…

"Hey! You okay?!" I quickly got out of bed and quickly dig him out. Chopper's head then popped out from the pile to much of my relief, "That was close…"

"A-Ah, t-thank you…" He muttered.

"No problem." I smiled as I lifted him out of the pile. "You're surprisingly light…"

"Let go of me!" He cried, "Ah! Are you going to eat me too?!"

"Oh no! I wouldn't!" I cried as I put him down, "I just want to help you out, that's all."

"A-Aren't you scared of me?" He asked me.

"Huh? Why?"

"I mean… I'm a reindeer that walks on two legs… and I can talk… and I have a blue nose too…" He stated, "I'm a monster…"

"A monster, huh…?" I shrugged, "Eh, I've seen scarier monsters than you."

"Huh?"

"Hell, I've been tutored under one such monster! A DRAGON no less!"

"DRAGON?!" Chopper cried with sparkles in his eyes, "They exists?! Dragons exists?!"

"Yup! He told me so!" I tells him, liking the sparkles in his eyes. It's like telling a story to a young child.

"Can he fly?! Breathe fire?! Oh! Oh! Does he really like gold?! A lot dragons like gold!"

"Yes, maybe and… I don't know." I smiled.

"Wow… pirates really are amazing…" He muttered.

"You're amazing too, you know." I stated, "You can talk, walk like us, even study medicine! The first animal doctor, Dr. Chopper!"

"Huh?! S-Stop complimenting me, asshole~! That doesn't make me happy at all~!"

I chuckled at how terrible he is hiding his actual joy. Such a young child, subjugated by sociality as a freak… What a sad life he must have… It was thanks to Hiluluk and Kureha that he is able to have a somewhat happy life.

"Hey, do you want to-"

"FOUND YOU, REINDEER!"

I flinched when the door to my room slammed opened by my captain of all people. That prompt Chopper to start running for his life again, "Wait! Join my crew!" And they start running all over the room before finally running out leaving a trail of smoke in their tracks.

"…Luffy, you tactless idiot…" I sighed.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Okay! Finally finished with this chapter! A short one, I'm afraid, but most chapters before Alabasta are quite short. Not much about them I can have Rein interfere in.**

 **Anyway, here we have a more emotional Rein. How you can interpret it is up to you.**

 **So yeah, the poison arrow thing. I mean, Chess is an expert archer with flaming arrows of all things, so why not add poisoned arrows into the mix?**

 **And if you're wondering how Rein able to survive getting poisoned, let me give you a hint. There's a reason why he became a she.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	15. Ch 15:Doctor Chopper!

**Chapter 15: Doctor Chopper!**

* * *

I awoke again after I heard a loud explosion goes off. I looked around to find whatever the cause of it, then I recalled what Wapol did when he comes here. So the battle has already begun, huh…? Then there's no way I'm just sitting around in bed!

I quickly get out of the bed, finding a spare coat lying around and exits out my room.

"BRR! C-C-COLD!"

When I entered the hallway, the freezing cold hit my face nearly froze my nose off. But I persisted and walked along the hallway. I know Wapol is going to appear near the centre pillar, so I have to be ready to intercept him with Nami.

I passed by a small room, where I saw a sabre hanging on the wall. Well, since Raitou is not with me right now… I took the weapon off the rack and gripped it tightly in my hand and proceed onwards.

"WHAT DID THEY DO TO MY BEAUTIFUL CASTLE?!"

I paused when I heard that, I looked down to see the hippo of the man staring out in shock. I quickly ducked behind a pillar, as I run through any plans to take him down.

Okay, so if he's here, that means he's planning on assimilating the weapons on the vault… which is I believe in the centre pillar. So, plan A is to-

The door next to me opened, revealing to be Nami in a woolly cloak as she looked left and right cautiously, I bet for Kureha. Her eyes met mine, as I quickly raise my finger to my lips.

She gave me a confused look, before noticing Wapol below.

"Who… are you?" She asked.

"You must be one of the Straw Hat's comrades, correct?" He asked.

"N-No! Absolutely not!" She quickly lied, "I don't have the faintest idea on what you're talking about!"

"Huh? Really?"

"Really. I'm just a random navigator passing by."

"Oh, sorry for the mistake."

"Bye then!"

"Sure…"

I hear snowy footsteps before I saw Wapol jumped over the railings and start chasing Nami, "LIAR!"

I held my breath as I watch Nami getting chased across the hallway before descending down the stairs, where the fat hippo get stuck between the gaps.

"NGH! Damn it! Seems like I've put on a few too many pounds recently!" He cried.

"Understatement of the week, fat fuck!"

I quickly dashed out from where I hid and starts whaling on him with my sabre still sheathed. I keeps hitting his head over and over in hopes of knocking him out. He suddenly opened his mouth and bites down on the sabre, crushing it between his teeth as he starts chewing on the metal pieces.

"WAHAHA! What now, you dumb hippo?!"

Yeah, like that ever stopped me! I just start punching him in the head, the temples and nose to be specific, over and over again. After many countless hard hits along with a few kicks added in for good measure, the fat tyrant seems to have finally lost consciousness.

"Finally…" I groaned as I rubbed my sore knuckles, "Damn that fucker has a hard skull. Guess that metal chin isn't just for show…"

"Oh! A key!" I heard Nami stated, "Yoink! Treasury, here I come!"

"Ah, Nami, that's the Armory's key." I tells her.

"Huh?! That's lame." She moaned, "… but the treasury key is definitely on him, right?"

"Considering his personality, I wouldn't be surprised if his treasure is on his dumb boat."

"Okay! To his boat!"

"Ah! There he is!" We hear Luffy shouted as our captain ran in huffing. He skids to a stop when he saw what I did to him, "Oh, he's defeated already?! No fair, Rein! No stealing!"

"Sorry, captain! But I need to do something!" I called out.

"Nami-swan! Rein-chwan!" Sanji is next to crawl in, literally he crawled in, "Thank goodness you all are safe!"

"Yeah, that's good and all, but what are you two out of your beds?" Kureha asked as she entered, her eyes glaring at us from behind the sunglasses. I think she may be using Conqueror Haki, but I'm too terrified to find out.

"U-Um… it was an emergency…?" I pleaded.

"Well get back to bed, before I make you!"

"YES MA'AM!" We both quickly dashed up the stairs and into our rooms.

* * *

After the fiasco with Wapol, Dalton and the village's militia all arrived at the castle. From what I can hear, it seems that Luffy has decided to send Wapol flying again with another Gum-Gum Bazooka. Well, at least I know that happens anyway.

The same thing as in canon happened; Dalton thanked Chopper, the villagers freaked out, Usopp freaked out the most, the reindeer ran away, and Luffy gave chase as usual.

Right now, I'm staying in the same room as Sanji, who is groaning in pain from his treatment. Right now, I'm waiting for the whole fiasco with Kureha to end and then wait for Nami to come in. If this is still according to the plot that is…

And on cue, the navigator entered our room, "Okay, we have like a few minutes before Kureha comes back." She tells me, "So help me with Sanji."

"Got it!" I slipped out of my bed and put on my coat, or the coat I stole from Kureha anyway. And with Nami's help, heaved Sanji over my shoulders.

With careful steps, I carefully carried the blonde cook down the stairs. I hear slight groaning from Sanji, and then I felt some movement on my-wait a damn minute…

I looked down at the hand over my shoulders, they are obviously rubbing on my breast somewhat. I faced him, the blonde cook having the most obviously perverted face and giggling the same way.

"HANDS TO YOURSELF!"

I knocked him in the head with a head-butt that was followed by a knuckle from Nami. He obviously out-cold from that by the lack of response.

With that out of the way, I slowly made my way out of the castle as my boots squelched on the snow under my feet.

"But I'm… a reindeer!-!" I stopped when I saw Chopper shouting at us, "I have horns! And hooves! And my nose is blue! I… I do want to become a pirate but…"

"But I'm not human! I'm a monster! So I can't become pirates with you! That's why… I've come here just to say thanks! Thank you, for inviting me along… Though I'll be staying here…maybe… one day, I'll-!"

"SHUT UP! LET'S GO ALREADY!"

I chuckles a little at that, who the hell uses 'Shut up' when inviting someone…?

"Y-YES!"

* * *

After a while, Chopper went back into the castle to say his goodbyes. We all waiting out there in the snow for him. I never got the chance to play in the snow yet, so I decided to do just that.

And the first thing to do is…

"Hey guys, look! A snow angel!" I laughed.

"Is this really the time, Rein?" Vivi asked.

"We're leaving this place and probably never encounter another winter island again in a long time!" I argued, "I'm going to make every second count!"

"Hey, we should go say our goodbyes as well." Luffy stated, "To the granny doctor and that huge guy shaped liked an acorn…"

"Just let Chopper alone do that." Nami tells him, "It's just gonna be a big tear-fest for them. That doctor may seem cruel on the outside, but she's pretty soft-hearted on the inside."

"Then, should we really just go like this?" Usopp asked.

"Yes, as soon as Chopper comes back, we'll go down and sail straight for Alabasta! Unless…" Our navigator looked at me, "Did we take any detours in your book?"

"Nope, just straight to Alabasta from here." I stated as I finished making the snow angel.

"Alright, then it's settled. Is it fine by you, Vivi?"

"Yes, since we're getting a doctor on board." The princess nodded.

"Doctor…?" Luffy looked at us confused.

"Alrighty then, we'll set up the ropeway in the meantime." Usopp stated as he walked towards the entranceway, "Yo, Luffy. Give me a hand."

"Awesome! I didn't even know there WAS a ropeway!"

Then after a while, there seems to be noise coming from inside the castle. "What's with all that noise?" I asked, although I have the sneaking feeling I know.

"Jeez, whoever is making so much noise should show some more class…" Nami sighed, "Don't they know others are trying to make a tearful good-bye?"

"Hey, isn't that him coming towards us?" Zoro pointed out.

And lo and behold, Chopper is running towards us in his full reindeer form with a sleigh in tow.

"What's going on?!" Vivi cried.

"I'm being chased!" He cried, "Everyone, get on! We'll going down the mountain right now!"

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" I then notices the figure chasing him and nearly pissed my pants when Kureha came out running with knives throwing right at us.

After that, it was a blur as I somewhat manages to get onto the sleigh along with the rest of the crew as we all descends down the rope together. Ha, I feel like Santa Claus right now, not a bad feeling! I looked up at the starless sky, the full moon shining brightly down on us.

Within minutes, Chopper has dragged us down the rope onto the snowy ground below and starts to run off into the woods.

"WOOHOO! THAT WAS AWESOME!" Luffy cheered, "Let's go again!"

"Don't be stupid!" Nami scolded him, "We have to hurry up and set sail!"

"I…I thought I was gonna die…" Usopp stuttered.

"You and me both…" I gasped, "I nearly pissed my pants…"

"Huh?! W-Where am I?!" Sanji suddenly cried.

"Oh, did you wake up, Sanji?" Vivi asked.

I looked at Chopper pulling us along, and although I can't really see it, I know he is conflicted. So, I decided to help him with it.

"Don't worry, Chopper." I smiled, "His work is complete."

"Huh?"

*BANG*BANG*BANG*BANG*BANG*

The sleigh slowed to a stop when we heard the cannon fire. We slowly turned around, as we witnessed one of the most beautiful things to have every transpired in our entire voyage.

Slowly but surely, the snow starts to turn color. No longer was it white but it became a shade of pink. And the mountain that castle is on, it became one of the biggest and beautiful sakura trees I've ever had the chance to witness.

"Whoa…" Hell, Luffy was shocked _speechless_.

"You said it." Zoro nodded.

"It's so pretty…" Nami sighed in awe.

And finally, Chopper's dams finally burst as he starts bawling his eyes out. I couldn't help but shed a few tears. The research of one quack doctor, a final gift from him to his surrogate son, and a final farewell from mentor to student.

It has finally reached him.

* * *

Soon, we have sailed off into the open seas in the middle of the full moon night. Sakura-colored snow dropping all around us, as Luffy decides to start a huge party to celebrate.

And what a celebration! Drinks are out, Sanji cooked up some delicious snacks and everyone is making joy and merry. I couldn't help but laugh in the festivities, especially when Luffy started doing the chopsticks in the nose and mouth act.

"The full moon is out, and the cherry blossoms are in bloom! What a night!" Luffy cheered.

"Chopper! Hey, Chopper! How long are you going to just sit down there for?!" Usopp asked our new companion, "Come on! Drink with us!"

"Those cherry blossoms were sure are pretty though." Sanji stated, "Didn't think I'd get to see something like that in a snow country!"

"You said it!" Zoro said happily as he poured the blonde cook a drink, "And what better time than now for a drink?!"

"Hey, guys look! I've learn this from Yosaku!"

"HAHAHA! Looking great, captain!" I laughed.

"GUYS! Would it kill you to pay some attention over here, too?!" Nami cried, pointing at the shivering Carue wrapped in a thick blanket hugged by Vivi.

"What, those two looked alive to me." Luffy stated.

"Carue! What were you doing out frozen in the river?!" The princess cried.

"Maybe he slipped and fell in?" Zoro suggested.

"You stay quiet, Mr. Bushido!"

"Quack… quackquackquack…"

"He said he saw someone called Zoro disappeared in the river, so he jumped inside to rescue him but ended up frozen instead." Chopper translated.

"So it was YOUR fault!" Nami shouted as she knocks Zoro over the head.

"Huh? You can understand what Carue is saying, Tony-kun?" Vivi asked.

"I was originally an animal, so I can communicate with other animals." He explained.

"That's amazing, Chopper!" Our navigator said in awe, "Not only you're well versed in medicine, but you can talk to animals too!"

"EH?! T-That doesn't make me happy at all, y-you idiot~!"

I laughed at his failed attempt in hiding his joy.

"Wait, Nami-san, what do you mean by 'medicine'?" Sanji asked.

"Oh, Chopper here is a doctor." She explained.

"WHAATTT?!"

"Wait, why did you even invite him if you don't even know about that?"

"Cool reindeer with seven transformations." Luffy explained.

"Emergency Food Supply." Sanji stated.

"Cute Mascot." I chimed in with a thumbs-up.

"Pirates don't need a cute mascot!" Nami cried.

"Come on, look at him!" I stated pointing at him, "See how fluffy he looks, those cute eyes and small size? He's great mascot material!"

"Ah! Oh no! I left my surgical tools back at the castle!" Chopper cried.

"Huh? Then what's this?" She then produced a small blue backpack, "It was in the sleigh."

"My backpack! B-But how?!"

"Probably Kureha." I stated with a smile, "I guess a mother does know her child best."

"…"

"She's a wonderful person, isn't she?" Nami smiled.

"AHAHAHAHAHA!"

"KEEP IT DOWN OVER THERE!"

"Hey, hyaher! Uanna ry hoo?!" Luffy asked.

And with that, Chopper puts on the chopsticks much to the dismay of Nami.

"ALRIGHT! Attention, everyone!" Usopp shouted over the party's noise, "I like to welcome our new friend, and doctor, Tony Tony Chopper! And so, I'd like to propose a toast!"

"TO OUR NEW FRIEND, CHOPPER!"

"CHEERS!"

We all slams our mugs together in celebration, as the party rages on into the night.

And then, something happened that I wish did not happen.

"Hey, Rein! Why aren't you drinking?" Zoro asked.

"Rein-chan can drink whatever she wants, moss-head!" Sanji shouted.

"It was just a harmless question, perverted cook!"

"Yeah, why aren't you drinking anything?" Usopp asked, "I've never seen you even touch ale once."

"I'm not that good with alcohol." I tells him, "One cup of beer, and I'm straight up wasted. And I can be really weird when I'm drunk. At least, that's what people told me…"

"It can't be that bad." Nami stated as she hands me a mug, "Come on! It's just one cup. Drink up!"

I looked at the mug of alcoholic beverage, before gulping a little as I received it. "Okay… whatever happens next, I want to let you know that it was not intentional."

"Yeah, yeah, bottoms up!"

I sighed before downing the whole thing in one gulp.

* * *

 _[Warning! Lime up ahead]_

Everyone all waited in anticipation as they watch Rein chucking the beer down, "Nice, nice, Rein!" Zoro cheered.

"Yeah! Go girl!" Nami cheered on.

After a while, the mug is completely drained as she lets out a big sigh. Her face already red and her eyes misted over.

"Rein, you alright?" Usopp asked.

"…"

"Man, she wasn't kidding. She really is a light-weight." Zoro stated.

"Rein-chan~! Want to snuggle up with me~?" Sanji cooed as he ran up to her.

Only for her to grab him by the shoulders and starts kissing him in the lips much to everyone's shock.

The blonde cook froze in surprise, as he felt her tongue entering his mouth and wrestled with his. After a full minute of making out, Sanji falls over flushed and semi-conscious with heart-filled eyes as Rein licked her lips.

"Tasty~ Smoked cheese~"

"Um… Rein…?" Everyone all backed off from her a little.

Their chronicler looked over them, before eyes locking on Vivi, the princess flinched in shock. Within seconds, she pounced on her and starts making out with her as well.

"Rein! MM! S-Sto-Mm!"

"Oh my god, she turns into a kissing demon!" Usopp cried.

"And I think we found out her sexuality too…" Nami stated fearfully.

"Vivi~ You taste so good~ Smell so nice~" Rein cooed as she snuggled up to her.

"R-Rein! E-Enough already-Eep!"

The princess froze as she felt her fingers slipping down her pants much to everyone astonishment, Zoro and Usopp having their eyes wide open in pure shock. Everyone could not move an inch as they watch her fingering Vivi and from the moans she is emitting, she is good at it.

"S-Stop, AH! N-Not t-there~!"

"Such naughty sounds, princess~" Rein giggled as she start to grope her chest, "You must be really backed-up~"

"N-No… w-wait! A-Anymore and I… I…!"

And with a loud moan, Vivi's knees buckled as she shook from the release she was made to. Rein slipped her fingers back out, licking the fluids dripping on them, "Tasty~ Like sweet cream~"

"Okay, anyone here having the weirdest boner right now?" Usopp asked.

"Here." Zoro stated.

"Then stop looking, you perverts!" Nami shouted kicking the two in the head.

"Shall we continue~?" Rein snuggles back into her as she starts sucking on her nape.

"W-Wait! I just-!" And soon, she felt the suction stopped as they collapsed onto the floor with Rein on top of her. "R-Rein…?"

"Zzz…"

"She fell asleep…" Nami gaped.

"Okay, in favor for not letting Rein touch any alcoholic drinks ever," Zoro raised his hand, "Say aye."

"Aye!"

"What did Rein do to Vivi?" Luffy asked innocently.

"Luffy, I sometimes envy your simple-nature…"

* * *

The very next day, I woke up with a killer hangover and no memories of what transpired last night.

And by the way everyone seem to look at me, and the fact that Vivi is completely avoiding me, I'm guessing what my drunk-self did isn't something that can't be discussed at all, privately or otherwise…

Anyway, our time taken in sailing is as long as it took to get to Little Garden, so we have plenty of time to do whatever we desired. I, along with my duties as chronicler, decided to add something a little extra in my daily schedule on the Going Merry.

* * *

"So, you want some advice on your sword-training?" Zoro asked me.

"Yeah, since you're the only other sword-wielder on this crew." I nodded as I held the notebook Sen gave me as reference for my sword training. Within the notebook, are the known stances along with a few secret techniques written in some sort of code, none that I have manages to crack except for Dragon Flash.

All of the known stances are the basics of the basics, from what I've used up till now along with a few others that I'm planning on working on.

"Well, I can't say I'm a good teacher…"

"No need to be. I just need some insight on some of that techniques in here."

"…Speaking of which, I've been wanting to ask you about that attack you used back on Little Garden." Zoro stated, "That Dragon Flash? Why didn't you use that attack to deal with that woman quickly?"

"Oh, that." I shrugged, "It was the only one I manages to crack out of this dumb sounding codes." I opened to the page that contains most of the secret techniques, "See this part here? Took me a month just to crack it-"

"Oh, I get it."

"…What?"

"It's pretty obvious. It's written right there."

"WHERE?!"

"Like around here? This part where it says…"

And with that, Zoro pretty much cracked half of the techniques hidden in there. Not that I'm complaining but I am kind of envious of his brain. …Okay, not really, but damn he can think when it comes to fighting and swords!

* * *

Then there was that incident with a bird…

* * *

"We got trouble! Luffy's been captured by a bird!" Chopper cried as he ran all over the ship; me, Zoro, Sanji and Usopp all just playing poker to pass the time.

"Did he asked for help?" Zoro asked.

"No, he didn't…"

"Then he'll be fine."

"Yeah, Luffy isn't that dumb to get eaten by some dumb bird." I explained, "By the way, Royal Flush."

"WHAT?!"

"Three times in a row?!"

"I call cheat!"

"Gum-Gum PROPELLER!"

And then the deck is bombed by the rubber captain as most of our cards are sent flying across the wooden floor.

"Hey, guys! I got us lunch!"

* * *

And then, of course, there are the final explanations from Vivi herself about BW's hierarchy and Crocodile's position in Alabasta.

* * *

"Hero?" Nami asked, "Crocodile is Alabasta's _hero_?"

"To be one of the Seven Warlords, means that you're a pirate employed by the World Government itself." Vivi explained, "So whether it's the Warlord who get rids of the raids, or the Marines who do it for justice, the end result is still the same. The people are thankful to whoever keep them safe."

"Well, I guess that's to be expected…" Sanji stated, "But to think that Alabasta's own _hero_ would be secretly planning on taking over the country… I don't think anybody would have imagined that even in their dreams."

"So either way, all I have to do is kick that guy's ass, right?!" Luffy concluded.

"Yes, if we can put a stop to the civil unrest first, and then chase away Baroque Works, then Alabasta will be saved…" The princes stated.

"Oh yeah, about that." Usopp asked, "Exactly how is this Baroque Works organization set up again? And what's with all that Mr. and Ms. business?"

"It's quite simple, really." Vivi explained, "At the top, we have Crocodile who goes by the codename Mr. 0. Then you have the 12 people and 1 animal who are his 'agents' that received their orders directly from Mr. 0. These 13 agents are all named Mr. followed by a number signifying their rank. And then they are paired with female partners of similar rank."

"Mr. 13 and Ms. Friday are a special case, since they served as executioners that punished those who fail their missions."

"And then among those agents, those ranked 5 and above are collectively known as [Officer] agents. Most of these officer agents are Devil Fruit users, and they only carry out the most important missions."

"Below them are the [Frontier] agents, they act as leaders of unranked followers called [Millions] to collect money from hunting down pirates at the entrance of the Grand Line."

"That's the basic run-down of the Baroque Works organization."

"Oh, I get it! So all I got to do is kick Crocodile's ass, right?!"

"You didn't understand a thing, did you…?" Sanji sighed at our captain's oblivious nature.

"Actually, he's not too far from the point." I added, "From what I recalled, once Crocodile is gone, the entire BW organization pretty much disappeared. They're never heard from for the remainder of your journey."

"So I kick Crocodile's ass, and then Vivi's home will be saved, right?" Luffy stated.

"Close enough." I shrugged, "After that is just dealing the civil unrest."

"But assuming that taking over Alabasta is BW's final goal…" Nami pointed out, "Then the ones you called officer agents should all be…"

"Yes. Be gathering in one place." Vivi nodded.

"But we definitely have dealt with about a fifth of their main battle strength." I stated, "We defeated Mr. 5, Ms. Valentine, Mr. 3 and Ms. Golden-Week. That leaves about…" I did a little mental calculation, "Five officer agents plus Crocodile and Ms. All-Sunday, right?"

"But they are of the top-tier, right?" Usopp asked, "They must be even scarier than them."

"They are strong, but scary…?" Bon-Clay came to mind, "Okay, one may be a little unnerving, but they…" Then Mr. 1 and Ms. Doublefinger pops in my head, "…okay, they are pretty terrifying…"

"Not helping, Rein!"

* * *

After that, it was smooth sailing for then on. A few little mishaps from Luffy's part, but they aren't that big of a deal. Except for the lack in food supplies.

Surprisingly, even with the extra meat, Luffy's black hole of a stomach is still unsatisfied by it. And thus, we are left with almost dwindling food resources consists of mostly dried food and a few herds of vegetables.

Which is why I am fishing right now. I manages to get myself some bait by some Sea King jerky I have left in my rucksack and manages catch quite a few seafood in my bucket.

"CARUE!"

And by that scream, Vivi must have seen what Luffy and Usopp are using as bait.

Oh, I got a bite! I reeled it in as hard as I could, manages to pull up a rather decent size salmon. Although it is larger than I expect from such a fish. The Grand Line bizarre eco-system must have influenced most of the sea-life here.

"What's that…? Smoke?"

From what Vivi said, I turned to notice the mist up ahead. I remember this, aren't those like the results of volcanic vents around here? Oh, that means the water must be heated! I got myself an idea! I quickly entered the kitchen, ignoring their talking about volcanos and island and took some eggs from the fridge.

And then, with a small net, I tied it to my fishing rod and lowered it down into the water. We soon passed into the steam, the smell of Sulphur overpowered my nostrils to the point of tears. But I bear with it as long as I can. For the sake of my eggs!

A few minutes later, we finally passed through the steam. I quickly reels up the net of eggs, they're steaming hot from the looks of it. Time to see if-

"We caught an Okama!"

Usopp's and Luffy's sudden screams nearly caused me to drop them, I manages to keep my bearing on the railings in time. Damn that was close!

"Oh my! Hugging onto the first duck that quacks along my way! Whatever am I thinking?!"

And from the sound of that feminine masculine voice, Mr. 2 Bon-Clay has arrived.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Finished! Drum Kingdom is done, and now approaching Alabasta arc! Now this would be interesting! I have plans on how I'm going to work with this, inspiration from This Bites, great fic; check it out.**

 **Anyway! Hope I managed this part good enough! Not much a fight scene in Drum, but this should suffice for now.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	16. Ch 16:I'm not wearing a Dancer outfit!

**Chapter 16: I'm not wearing a Dancer outfit!**

* * *

"Please forgive this foolish little swan for wandering onto your boat." Bon-Clay apologized, "To be rescued by pirates I've never met nor heard of…I shall never forget the debt I owe you! Now then… I'm feeling a bit puckish. A hot bowl of soup would be smashing right about now…"

"OH HELL NO!" Most of us shouted at them, I'm just enjoying my improvised hot-spring eggs. Soft-boiled to perfection~!

"This is good, Rein." Sanji stated in surprise, "Never tasted soft-boiled eggs this good before."

"In my wor-I mean, ISLAND, people sometimes cook eggs in hot springs, or in volcanic lakes." I tells him.

"Oh, can I have some-"

"Get lost!" I shouted at the cross-dresser.

First of all, I have no dislike towards the LGBT community nor against cross-dressing in general. Hell, I'm technically part of it! But for how I admired them for acting their gender regardless of people's view on them, I couldn't stand the way he dressed! I mean, if you're going to show off your legs, at least shave them!

"Oh my~!" Bon-Clay cooed as he winked at Vivi, "Such a cute little thing you are. And just my type~! I could just eat. You. Up~!"

"U-Ugh…"

"Um, Vivi, shouldn't you… you know…" I pointed at him, the princess just cringed from disgust. Geez, and I thought _I_ was airheaded…

"So you can't swim, huh?" Luffy laughed.

"Yes! For you see, I've eaten a Devil Fruit."

"Really? Which one?" Usopp asked.

"Hm? Well, since I do have some time to kill until my crew comes looking for me…" He nodded in agreement, "Allow me to treat you daisies a show!"

"Behold, my ability-"

"Did you just call me a daisy?!" I screeched at him as I kicked him in the head.

"Ah! Why did you do that for, Rein?!" Luffy cried.

"Never call me that ever again, got it?" I growled.

"My, my, what a butch cutie, you are~" Bon-Clay laughed as he got up, patted me on my cheek with his right hand-wait a damn… "Sorry for accidentally insulting you. Enjoy this show as forgiveness~"

And with his right hand, he touches his face and became mine. "Ta da!" Oh god, that looked so weird! It's like looking at a mirror yet not! Wait, that's the main problem here! Damn it! He took my face!

"Ah! It's Rein!" Luffy cried, "But Rein is over there!"

"HAHAHA! Surprised, surprised?!" He/She laughed in my voice, which is really, really unsettling, "But my~ for a butch, you have quite some nice puppies in here~!"

"Where are you touching?!" I screeched as I tried to kick him/her but missed.

"And when I touched my face with my left hand…" He turned back into himself, "Ta da! I'm back! This is the power of my ability I got from the Clone-Clone fruit!"

"His voice…" Nami spluttered.

"Even his body was identical…" Usopp muttered in shock.

"SO COOOOLLLLL!" Luffy cried in awe.

"Quite a nice power I have, right?" Bon-Clay laughed as he pats most of the people on deck with his right hand, "As you can see…"

He turned into Usopp, "If I take my right hand~"

He turned into Zoro, "And touch someone's face~"

He turned into Chopper, "Then as you can see~"

He turns into Nami, "I can copy their faces~! And of course, their bodies too~!" He/She then stripped off, showing off Nami's near nude body to everyone, I sputtered in shock as I struggled not to look at him/her.

"Quit it!" Nami knocks him back into his form with a knuckle sandwich. For that, I'm eternally grateful.

"Well, that's all I can show you guys. Anymore would be risking-"

"You're amazing!" Luffy cheered.

"Show us more!" Chopper and Usopp chorused.

"And for my next act! I'll show you all my memory ability!"

"YEAH!"

"He's really easy to convince…" Nami muttered.

"A face I've once touched in the past," He swap his face to some random person I don't know about, "I do not forget!"

I watched anxiously as I watch him cycle through his faces one after another, and then for just a brief moment, I thought I saw someone that looked awfully familiar, but he cycled way too fast for me to notice. I definitely saw King Cobra amidst them though, I looked at Vivi to see if she got it.

From the pale composure on her face, I say she saw it.

"How was it?! My hidden talents~!? This isn't something I ordinarily show to others, you know~!" Bon-Clay laughed as he spun around like a ballet.

"Bravo! Bravo!"

Seeing as he is distracted, I walked up to her and tapped her shoulders, "Listen, and don't freak out just yet. We need him to be none the wiser as long as we can." I whispered to her.

"B-But! O-One of the faces are…!"

"Your father, I know. But listen. I need him to just leave. According to the story, he's going to play an important role down the line." I explained, "And we need him alive and has this friendship of his."

"…You sure he is important?" She asked me worriedly.

"Yes, extremely." I nodded. I ordinarily wanted him to not get any of our faces, but now that he has, I can't really change too much. No telling what sorts of big effect it might have in the future. Plus, if I tried to blow his cover, there's no telling what might happen afterwards.

"Hey! There's a ship coming this way." Nami stated, a swan ship-head can be seen sailing towards us, "Could that be yours?"

"Oh phooie! Time to part ways already? What a pity…" The okama sighed.

"WHAATT?!"

"Don't cry, you Silly Billy. Farewells are an inevitable thing if you sail the seas!" He stated, "But remember this! The length of time spent together has no bearing on TRUE friendship! Let us meet again someday!"

"YEAH!"

"Alright!" I watched as he leaped off our railings onto his own boat, "Let's go, you guys!"

"Yes, Mr. 2 Bon-Clay, sir!"

I swear I hear a pin dropped as we watch the swan-themed boat paddled away into the distance.

"Mr. 2?!" Everyone else cried.

"Yup, the one and only." I stated firmly, "Not exactly what you expect, huh?"

"Wait, you knew it was him the whole time?!" Nami screamed at me, "Why didn't you say anything?!"

"Because! We need this little friendship for us to survive down the line!" I explained, "Listen! That guy may not looked like it, but he's a pretty strong fighter! And if I say it out loud just then, we'll be forced to fight him! We'll lose precious stamina and time doing so!"

"Really? But he don't looked that tough…" Usopp stated.

"He took multiple of Sanji's kicks to the face and is able to keep on walking!" I shouted, "Sanji's! Have you seen how strong his kicks are?!"

"…?!"

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

"But now he got our faces, you know!" Nami cried, "If he realizes that we're his enemies, then that memory skill of his will be a full disadvantage to us! He's able to infiltrate into the crew and take-over any one of us without arousing suspicion! We won't be able to trust any of own!"

"Really?" Luffy asked confused.

"Huh? Don't you realized how serious this is, Luffy?!"

"Hold on just a moment, Nami." Zoro stated, "Even though our captain doesn't have any real reason for thinking this way, I don't think he's wrong either. There's no reason to panic. We should considered ourselves lucky for having met him just now."

"Because NOW, we can set up a counter-measure."

"A… counter-measure…?" She stated.

"That's right, a way to counter his ability." He further explained, "He may be able to change into us, but it's only the 'us' that he met right now. That means we can find a way to identify ourselves in a way he doesn't know about."

"Oh, that's true!" Usopp nodded in understanding.

"So, how shall we do that?" Vivi asked.

"We can-"

A loud splash is heard from the rear of the ship. We all turned around to see a giant cat with scales. Okay, that is just weird…

"It's a Sea Cat!" Vivi cried.

"GAAAAAAAHHH! It's a sea monster!" Chopper and Usopp cried.

"Our first meal in four days!" Zoro cried as he whipped out his swords.

"FOOOODDD!" Luffy screamed along with him.

"You guys do realized that I've caught like a lot just now, right?" I pointed out.

"FFOOOOOOOODDD!"

Okay, he has completely lost it.

"Ah! It's backing away!"

"Back up the ship! Back it up!"

"L-L-Like we can do that!"

"Don't let it get away!" Sanji shouted as he rushed up the stairs to join them, "We have to hunt it down no matter what!"

"You can't!" Vivi cried as she swung a mop at their faces, knocking them onto the railing, allowing the poor creature to swim away to safety.

"What was that for, Vivi?!" Luffy shouted.

"You can't eat it! Sea Cats are sacred creatures of Alabasta!" She explained.

"You should have told us that, sooner!"

"There sure are a lot of strange creatures out in the sea." Chopper stated in awe.

"H-Heh, l-looks like y-you've still got l-long ways to g-go if y-you get s-s-scared at something like t-t-that…" Usopp shakily stated before putting on a brave bravado, "Let Captain Usopp tell you about that one time he faced Sea Kings in the Calm Belt."

"You fought against Sea Kings?!" Our doctor cried in awe.

"The biggest Sea Kings you could imagine, my lad!"

"I befriended a Sea King." I added my two-cents.

"REALLY?!" He looked at me with such a respectful and awe-stricken look, I kind of felt a little proud of it.

"Yup, his name is Leo." I smiled, "He's a large Lion Sea King from the Calm Belt. We were best buddies, he and I!"

"So cool!"

Kind of think of it, I wonder how he is doing right now… hopefully not beached again somewhere…

"Vivi! The wind and climate seems to have stabilised." Nami explained as she walked up to us.

"Yes, we must have entered Alabasta's climate zone." The princess nodded, "The Sea Cat we saw just now is proof of that."

Now that I think about, the weather is kind of warm right now. Dry, too.

"And I guess a sight like 'that' is another proof that we've reached Alabasta."

We all followed Zoro's gaze, and we saw what looks like a large fleet in the distance behind us. "So many ships! Where did they come from?" Luffy cried.

"H-Hey! They all have the BW symbols!" Usopp cried as he looked through his binoculars-googles.

"All of the organizations' underlings must have started to gather here…" Vivi stated, "Those are most likely the [Billions]. The Officer Agents' subordinates."

"That means there's about 200 of them…" Nami stated.

"Not only that, they're the elite agents who're completely on another level from regular bounty hunters you encountered on Whiskey Peak."

"S-Should we attack them while we can?!" Usopp cried as he readies the cannon.

"No wait! It'll be faster if I just go over and kick their asses!" Luffy cried, before his stomach growled, "No, let's get some food first!"

"Don't lose your nerves, you idiots." Zoro smirked, "They are just small fries."

"That's right." Sanji agreed, "Don't lose sight of our true objective or it'll be all over. There's only eight of us, after all."

"Right! So let's start our preparations!" I stated, "Zoro, what was your idea for the counter-measure for Mr. 2?"

* * *

After a while, we are currently tying up some bandages on our arms. To think that Zoro would come up with this trick of all things. "Colour me impressed, I didn't think you could come up with something like this." I stated.

"Oh shut up, you!" Zoro shouted at me.

"I see. With this, we can easily confirmed each other identity without any further doubts." Nami stated.

"Does he really look that similar to us?" Sanji asked, "That Clone-Clone guy, I mean."

"He doesn't just look like you, he IS you!" Usopp cried, "Too bad you missed him. He gave us quite a show."

"Gawking at okamas ain't my thing."

"Since we know there's an enemy like him, we can't be recklessly taking any solo actions." Zoro tells us.

"Are you telling us, or yourself?" I asked.

"SHUT UP!"

"We're close to the port. We'll dock the ship at the western side since we have to hide our ship." Vivi tells us.

"Alright! From now on, no matter what happens," Luffy called out as we placed our hands around in a circle, the bandages on our left arm visible to everyone, "This thing on our left arm will be the mark of our fellowship!"

"Now then, let's head ashore! To a restaurant! Then to Alabasta."

"Sort out your priorities!" We all screamed at him.

I sighed as I watch our captain get told off by most of our crew. I watch over to Vivi, she rubbing the bandages on her arm reassuringly. I looked down at my own bandages, before slamming my fist in my palm in the universal language of getting ready.

Bring it on, Baroque Works! We're coming for you!

* * *

We soon make docks behind some rocks a far distance from the nearest port town, Nanohana if I recalled correctly. From the distance, the city does have that Middle-Eastern feel to them. Mostly Egyptian but somewhere along those lines.

The infrastructure looked mostly made out of the hard sandy rock, one story tall at most. It's like something out of Aladdin.

"Listen, you guys!" Nami tells us, "I know this is obvious, but everyone please use some self-control and try not to act on instinct too much!"

"Yes, Nami-san!"

"By the way, Luffy just took off." I stated.

"FFOOOOODDDDD PPPLLAAAAAACCCCEE!"

"Get back here!" Our navigator screamed as we watch the dust cloud disappears into the city.

"He's all-instinct, that guy…" Usopp stated.

"What should we do?" Vivi asked.

"Don't worry. All we have to do is look for the place with the most commotion." Sanji stated, "He'll be there for sure."

"You got that right…" Our sniper stated tiredly.

"I wish he would take note that he has a bounty…" Nami sighed, "Especially in a large country like this one…"

"Just leave him be." Zoro tells her, "For now, we should find some food first. We can think about all those other stuff later."

"I agree with him." I nodded,

"…Wait! Look!"

We followed her gaze, finding a ship that docked in a similar location as ours. Now then I looked closely, this ship is almost the same as Bon-Clay's. Does Crocodile sponsored the same type to every Officer Agents?

"That's Mr. 3's ship!"

"WHAT?!"

"Don't tell me, he survived…?" Usopp stuttered.

"There's no mistaken it." Vivi stated, "That ship can only be operated by the power of the Wax-Wax fruit… So he must be here in this country too…"

"This is bad." Zoro pointed out, "He has seen our faces."

"Don't worry! I have an idea!" Usopp proudly stated.

* * *

"Okay, it is really stuffy in here…" I groaned.

"We have no choice." Usopp stated, "There's no telling where he is, so we have to move without standing out."

"I think we're standing out quite a bit…" Nami pointed out.

Usopp's grand idea was to use a large poncho to cover him, Zoro, Nami, Vivi, Carue and me as we entered through town to a small hidden convert corner. Sanji and Chopper doesn't need to since the wax-man doesn't know their faces.

It was an okay plan, but we are just arousing more suspicion by the masses this way.

"By the way, can you move faster, Zoro?" I asked, "I keep banging into your ass."

"Oh shut up, woman! This is the fastest I can go like this!" He shouted at me.

"Keep it down, both of you!" Usopp cried.

After a couple of minutes of walking, we made it to behind some ruins in the far edge of town. "Alright! Looks like no one has notice us!" Our sniper stated in relief.

"It's a miracle if that's the case…" Nami stated.

"But it looks like we're safe here." I stated, "Vivi, what's the next step…" I notices Vivi's face, "Vivi? Is something wrong?"

"Huh?! S-Sorry, what are you saying?"

"Is something the matter, Vivi-chan?" Sanji asked.

"…I-I'm sorry… I'm just a little relieved, that's all." She stated, "At the very least… from what I've seen of this town, things still seem all right… I probably can't rest easy, but I think I'll make it in time."

"…Hey, Vivi."

"Yes?"

"You said you had a plan for stopping the rebel army, correct?" Zoro asked, "What would you do? What should _we_ do?"

"Eh?"

"If you think you're going to make it in time, it'd be better to act quickly."

"T-That's true," Vivi looked at us confused, "But the agreement was only to bring me to Alabasta so-"

"Okay, that's enough out of you." I stated flicking a finger at her forehead, "Are you really saying that? After all we been through?"

"Rein…?"

"She's right." Nami nodded, "We travelled this far together. We can't just leave you now."

"That's right, Vivi." Usopp nodded, "Don't act so distant now."

"Plus, I'm interested in this Warlord" Zoro added.

"You don't have to mention THAT!" Our navigator cried.

"Anyway, don't think too much about responsibility and duty and all kinds of crap right now." I stated, "We've come this far, haven't we? Might as well stick with it to the end."

"Not to mention they are after all of us, except for me that is." Sanji stated.

"Also! If the country is destroyed, you can't pay up the 1 million beris you owe, right?" Nami smirked deviously.

"R-Right…"

"So there you have it!"

"Go to hell, you witch." Zoro scoffed.

"Thank you, Zoro! For not forgetting our debt!"

"W-What?!"

"Okay, I'm cutting this by the roots." I groaned, "Nami! That debt is not yours to pull. If it's anyone's, it's mine. And don't go with the expenses of crew bullshit. I have split up some cash I got from Sen into your safe, remember? So that debt is gone, capice?"

"Wha-?"

"And if you tried to weasel some loophole into this, I'll personally burn down all your tangerines."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Try me!"

"Thank you…" I heard Vivi say. A small smile pops on my face.

"Damn it…" Nami growled, "Fine! I'll pull out the debt! But I expect some compensation from you, got it?!"

"ME?!"

After our little argument settled down, Vivi explained her plan to us:

"Northwest of this city is an oasis called Yuba." She stated, "That's where the rebel army are based at. First I like to go there to stop the uprising. But to reach Yuba, we have cross the desert. For that, we'll need to stock up on the necessary food and water here, but if Mr. 3 is here…"

"Oh, in that case, it's no problem." Sanji stated, "He hasn't seen my face yet."

"That's right! Sanji have met almost none of them so far!" Nami stated.

"And one more." Zoro pointed out.

"That's right, Chopper too!"

"Eh?" The reindeer in question looked at us confused.

"That'll be perfect. We have a lot of stuff to carry." The blonde cook stated, "I'm counting on you."

"Okay! I got it!"

"Hey, hey, are you going to be alright?" Usopp asked him worriedly.

"It'll be fine! I want to do what I can do!" Chopper stated as he turns into his reindeer form, "There's no problem like this, right?"

"Oh, that's right! As expected of a human-reindeer!"

"Okay, then I'll appreciate your help." Vivi thanked them.

"Just leave it to us!" Sanji smirked.

"I've listed everything we need." She stated handing Sanji a piece of written paper, "Oh, and we'll need some clothes too."

"Clothes?"

"Ordinary clothes that won't stand out."

"And perfume!"

"Yes, Nami-san!"

"Food and water."

"Oh, and Tabasco."

"Who cares about what you idiots want?!"

* * *

"God damn it, Sanji!" I kicked him in the head hard to send him into the wall.

"It's not that bad, Rein." Nami tells me, "You looked rather lovely in that."

"That's the opposite I want to look like!"

And what I meant is the disguise that Sanji bought for us is rather… biased… I mean, the males I get since there are the most androgynous style of clothing available in this country. But for the ladies, me included, we get fucking DANCER OUTFITS!

I mean, come on! I get that most female clothing in the One Piece world is either form-fitting or revealing to the extent of erotic, but this is the fucking desert!

Since there aren't any choices I have, I have to wear this for the rest of my time here, which isn't that good for me and my pride.

I'm in the similar outfit to Nami's but with a different shade of blue and the cloth around my waist actually has a slit in it that shows my thighs much to my embarrassment.

"I mean, look at me! My sword looked so out of place in this!" I shouted, pointing at my sheathed weapon on my hip tied firmly by a golden accessory around my waist.

"When I meant ordinary clothes… this isn't what I had in mind, Sanji…" Vivi stated.

"It's fine, right~?" Sanji cooed as he leaped back onto his feet with a perverse grin, "As long as we don't look like pirates or a princess~? I mean, dancers are civilians too~"

"But to walk around in the desert in this…"

"Don't worry~! I'll carry you if your legs get tired~"

"You are not touching any of us." I growled.

"But then, compared to those lovely ladies, the rest of you guys looked just like bandits." Sanji chuckled.

"How are we any different from you?" Zoro huffed chewing on his meat on bone.

"Hm? What's wrong, Chopper?" Usopp asked our doctor as he held up his nose in pain.

"My nose feels like it's tearing itself apart…" He groaned.

"Is that so? Your nose must be quite sensitive, Tony-kun." Vivi stated, "Nanohana is also famous for its perfumes."

"Perfumes?"

"Yes, they're made from mixing very pungent ingredients so…"

"Like this one?" Nami sprayed a bottle on her.

"WAHH! Stop that!" The reindeer cried out in pain.

"Okay, that is sickening sweet…" I mumbled as I held my nose, "Are perfumes really necessary?"

"Of course, it is!" The navigator shouted at me, "It helps cover up my sweat!"

"…like that would help us in a desert…" I deadpanned at her.

"In any case, we now have all the supplies we need to cross the Alabastian desert…" Vivi nodded.

"So, where to next?" Zoro asked.

"First, we need to cross the river from this town and continue up north across the desert to Yuba." She tells us, "Once we reach Yuba-"

"Get down!" Zoro quickly pulls her behind the wall, as we watch several Marine officers ran around the streets to our surprise. Oh wait, didn't Luffy encounter Smoker here and get chased all over? "Marine… what are they doing here?" He wonders.

"Don't let him escape!"

"Sounds like there's some commotion going on in town… maybe some pirate appeared?"

And on cue, our dumb captain ran passed right in front of us, "It's you…?!" We all silently groaned.

"Oh, Zoro!"

"Gah! Oh for the love of…!"

"Lose them before coming here, you idiot!" I screamed at him as we all quickly packed up and took off running. We rushes down the streets, knocking into some stalls along the way as we make our way back to Going Merry.

"Why is that guy here?!" Usopp cried.

"You guys know that marine?" Vivi asked.

"Yeah, he's a Captain from Loguetown in the East Blue." Sanji stated, "Why is he doing here in the Grand Line?!"

"I won't let you escape!" We heard Smoker shouted from behind, "WHITE BLOW!"

"HEAT HAZE!"

And then a burst heat erupted from behind us, we skids to a stop as we saw flames blocking the Marine's path from us. The flames re-organized into a person, a bare-chest man with a cowboy hat holding onto a rucksack with the all-familiar mark tattooed on his back.

Portgas D. "Fire Fist" Ace.

"W-Who's that?!" Nami cried.

"Ace…?!" Luffy cried.

"You haven't changed at all, haven't you Luffy?" He smirked, "Since we can't talk like this, run along ahead. I'll keep these guys busy. Now GO!"

"Let's go!" Our captain commanded as we somewhat or other rushed on.

"Who is that guy?!" Nami asked.

"Oh him? He's Ace!" The rubber man laughed, "He's my brother!"

"Your brother?!" Everyone except me cried in shock. I, on the other hand, is thinking on how to stop Ace from getting captured by Blackbeard. After this, he went on his way to chase that Teach idiot down. But he doesn't know about the type of Devil Fruit that bastard has eaten and the dangers he is up against.

During our training session, I have told Sen about what might happen to Ace if the plots goes as it should be. Not sure if he changed any of that, but knowing Sen, maybe not and finds that rather amusing.

So now… how do I prevent Ace from getting-

"REIN!"

I nearly skid to a stop when I heard that familiar voice. I took a glance back worriedly as lo and hehold…

"SUIREN?!"

"Suiren, you mean that Marine Captain?" Sanji asked.

"What in hell blazing are you doing here?!"

"That's my question, Rein!" Suiren shouted as she leaped up at us, "What're you people doing with the Alabastian princess?!"

"Ah! She's coming this way!" Usopp cried as I prepared to parry her with my sword.

"Hold it right there!"

I watched as suddenly seemly out of nowhere, someone slams into her attack path, parrying her spear with a…metal pipe…?

Wait… metal pipe, blonde hair, top hat, black trench coat… it couldn't be…!

"Sorry, but I have some business with this band of pirates, mind standing out of the way?"

WHY IS SABO HERE?!

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **And done! This part is finally finished! And yes! SABO! Here in Alabasta!**

 **Yeah, butterfly effect in effect! And that thing about there being a familiar face Bon Clay has taken, you'll see soon enough!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	17. Ch 17:Butterfly Effect!

**Chapter 17: Butterfly Effect?!**

* * *

I looked on with what I presumed a shocked expression on my face.

Why? Why is he here?! This is way too soon!

"Y-You're…!" Suiren looked at him shocked, "W-What's the Revolutionary Army doing here?!"

"Relax, I'm on my own." He tells her with a smirk, "Like I said, I have business with this pirate crew."

"Who… is he…?" Sanji wonders.

"Do you know him, Rein?" Zoro asked.

"H-He…" I'm not sure what to say, I mean I was just expecting Ace here but for the third member of the ASL here?!

"A-At any rate, he's on our side, so let's head to the Going Merry!" Usopp called out as he took off, most of us running after him.

"Wait!" Suiren rushed towards us, only to get blocked by Sabo.

"Now, now. Your opponent now is me." He smirked.

"God dammit! What's going on in this country?!"

I keep quiet as we took off running down the street. I'll think about Sabo after I get to safety.

* * *

After a whole lot of running later, we finally boarded the Going Merry and sailed off into the river. After the chase, we were completely exhausted.

"Man that was close…" Usopp sighed, "I thought we're a goner for sure that time…"

"To think that Smoker guy chased us to the Grand Line…" Zoro groaned, "What is he, a blood hound?"

"At any rate, we manages to get away from them." Sanji stated, "Thanks to Luffy's brother and that weird guy with a pipe."

"Speaking of which, I didn't even know you have a brother, Luffy." Nami stated.

"Yeah, not that I'm that surprised by that, but…" Our swordsman stated, "What's he also doing on the Grand Line?"

"He's a pirate." Luffy tells us, "He's also searching for One Piece. Ace is three years older than me, so he left our hometown three years earlier too."

"To think that both brothers would end up eating a Devil Fruit…" Sanji stated.

"Yeah, that surprised me too!"

"Huh?" Usopp looked at our captain confused.

"He didn't have a Devil Fruit ability back when we lived together." He explained, "But even then, I could never beat him in a fight. Not even once. Ace is really strong!"

"Y-You couldn't beat him even once?" Nami said in surprise, "When he was just a normal human?"

"Guess the brother of a monster is an even bigger monster…" Our sniper stated.

"You guys got to take note on how long ago that is." I tells them, "It could be almost ten years ago for all we know." I'm not too off the mark, am I? Luffy is about 17-18 years old now, so it's close enough since Luffy meets Ace when he is around five if I recall…

"Wait, that means that even as a child, he is a monster?!" Usopp cried.

"That's not what I meant!"

"Yeah! Hahaha! I got my ass handed to me all the time!" Luffy laughed, "But I bet I can take him on now!"

"Do you even have any evidence to back up that bluff?" Zoro asked.

"Who can you take on now, Luffy?!"

We watched as Ace leaped up from below and lands right on where Luffy was sitting on the railings.

"Ace!"

"Sup, long time no see, Luffy." He waved. "Oh, but first! Thank you all for taking care of my troublesome brother. He can be quite a pain some time but please bear with him." He bowed to us.

"Ah, no, it's not that bad." We all replied subconsciously. Damn, guess all those lessons with Makino really shone through.

"So what are you doing here in this country?" Luffy asked.

"Hm? Did you not get my message at Drum?"

"Drum?"

Oh yeah, I knew there was something I forgot to mention back then… must have slipped my mind.

"Ah, whatever. It's not too important." Ace shrugged, "I'm just glad I'd met up with you. I've been sailing this waters for a little business I have to take care of, and I thought it would be nice to see you again before sailing off again."

"Ah, sorry! Am I intruding?"

My heart nearly stopped when we heard that voice behind us, we turned around to see a flock of crows in the air before a figure leaped down from it and onto the deck. And lo and behold, Sabo has arrived. With this, all of the ASL crew have reunited on the same boat.

All a little too early for my taste though…

"Hey, it's that guy that saved us from Suiren." Sanji stated.

"Say, didn't she say Revolutionary Army back then?" Vivi pointed out.

"Revolutionary Army?!" Nami cried.

"Huh? Who are you?" Luffy asked.

"I'm no one of real importance, I assure you." Sabo smiled, "I'm just here because my boss told me something rather interesting."

"Your boss?" Zoro wonders.

"Huh? And what does that have to do with Luffy here?" Ace asked cautiously. Damn, I think I saw some sparks coming off of his fingers. Talk about protective…

"L-Luffy…?" Sabo stumbled for a little before shaking his head, "Anyway, he told me that someone told him something interesting. She said that Straw Hat misses me."

Oh right! That message I shouted to Dragon back in Loguetown! Wait, that means I may have accidentally created this scenario here?! Not sure if it's a good or a bad thing but I'll take it!

"Straw Hat misses you?" Ace wondered before glaring at him, "What kind of bullshit is that?! Luffy doesn't even know you! Just tell us why you're really here for! Are you a bounty hunter after his head?!"

"W-What?! N-No! Like I said, I'm just here to talk, Ace!"

"Wait, why do you know my name?!" Ace shouted.

"Um, because you're famous?" I nervously pointed out, "Fire Fist Ace? Or Protgas D. Ace? Or maybe just Ace? From ASL?"

"ASL- Where do you heard about that?!" He shouted at me.

"Ah! Wait, Ace!" Luffy cried standing in front of me, "She's my crewmate! You can't hurt her! She just knows things from a mystery book, that's all!"

"Not exactly helping, captain…" I whispered to him.

"Okay, that makes her really suspicious!" He shouted, "The only people that knows about ASL are me, Luffy and Sabo alone!"

"Sabo…?" Sabo blinked, before clutching his head in pain, "ASL…? Ace…? Luffy…? H-Huh? W-Why do I feel like I should know you guys…?"

Oh! Is his memory close to coming back?! Alright! Just one final push!

"Sabo!" I shouted at him, "You got to remember! Mt. Colubo! Goa Kingdom! Curly Dadan!"

"Okay, this is absolute bullshit right now!" Ace shouted as he charges at me with a flaming fist, "Tell me who you actually are!"

"Ah, crap!" I quickly draw out Raitou and blocked his flaming fist, "W-Wait! Let me finish first!"

"Why do you know about Dadan and Sabo?! Who are you?!" He shouted at me, "A spy for the Marines?! One of the old geezer's men?!"

"A-Ah! Ace, wait! Don't hurt her!" Luffy cried.

"P-Pact!" I screamed as loud as I can, "Brother Pact! You guys exchanged sake cups with each other-GAK!"

"WHO ARE YOU?!" He screamed as his flaming hands starts to burn at my throat. GAH! IT BURNS! EVEN BREATHING IS STARTING TO HURT!

"ACE!"

"AHHH! He's going to kill her!" Usopp cried.

"P-Pact? AH!" I think he finally remembers! "I-I remember now!"

"G-GAAHHKKKK!" Okay, it's getting hard to even make a sound now!

"ACE!" Luffy cried as I saw him trying to pull his brother off of me.

"Ace, stop!" Sabo cried as he pulls him off of me much to my relief. God, my throat felt raw, even just breathing is painful.

"Rein! Are you alright?!" Nami cried as she check my wounds, "Oh my god! Your throat is completely burned!"

"AH! DOCTOR!"

"That's you, you idiot!" Zoro stated knocking some sense to the reindeer.

"Ah! That's right!"

"Let go of me!" Ace shouted as he shoved Sabo aside, "Who are you acting all friendly to me like that? I don't even know you!"

"Ace, it's me! Sabo!" He cried.

"Sabo? You just have the same name as him! Don't bullshit with me!" The fire man shouted, "Sabo is dead! Has been for a long time!"

"That's right!" Luffy chimed in, "Sabo has… been…" I think our captain is piecing the pieces together now. "Has… has…been…! EEEHHHHHH?! SABO?!"

"Huh?! Don't be ridiculous, Luffy!" Ace shouted, "Don't let him trick you! There's no way Sabo would be alive! He would have contacted us by now!"

"It _is_ me, Ace!" Sabo cried as he pulled off his hat, "We used to stash our pirate funds in a tree near Gray Terminal, remember?!"

"Huh? H-How did… you…?" And now Ace finally sees it, "S-Sabo…? I-Is that really you?"

"It is, Ace." He smiled, "Sorry for taking so long. I have amnesia for a long time and-"

"SABO!"

And then Luffy leaped onto him with a bone-crushing hug, "SABO! IT'S REALLY SABO!" He bawled his eyes out, "I-I thought you were dead!"

"God damn it, man!" Ace shouted wrapping one of his arm around the blonde with a teary smile, "Don't scare us like that! W-We really thought you…!"

"I was, at the time…" Sabo tells them, "When the World Noble shot my ship, I really thought I was dead. And then I was saved, but I lost my memory. I couldn't even remember my own brothers…!"

"Sabo…"

"But now… we're back together!" He declared, "We finally all made it out to sea, didn't we?!"

"Yup! That's right!" Ace smirked, "We are free!"

"And look at you." Sabo smirked, "Second Division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, huh? What happened to becoming Pirate King?"

"A lot of things happened here and there, but that's not my dream now." His brother smirked.

I could cry and laugh right about now. The three brothers from different mothers, all reunited after all these years is really touching. All those time I have re-read One Piece when waiting for the next update, I always wondered if they could by chance be reunited.

These three boys all suffered many hardships growing up, with only each other as support. And then…

I recalled that blasted panel in the manga, the very moment that Luffy lost one of his only family he has ever had. I'm going to change that, no matter what!

"Can someone tell me what's going on?" Usopp asked, "For a second they are fighting, next they are buddies?"

"And Luffy's brother… is he really a commander of the Whitebeard pirates?" Nami stated.

"I knew I saw that mark somewhere…" Sanji stated, "So the Whitebeard Pirates AND the Revolutionary Army? Talk about a weird combination…"

I tried to speak, but my voice is hardly louder than a whisper. "Ah, Rein, don't speak!" Chopper cried as he patch up my neck, "Your throat was nearly burned through. You have suffered almost second-degree burns all around your neck, it's a miracle that your vocal cords are still functioning."

"Oh right, sorry about that." Ace nervously laughed, "You were talking about things that no one should know, so I kind of panicked."

"And burn her neck off?" Sabo stated, "I see that your temper has hardly simmered down after all these years."

I wanted to tell him the reason, but I can hardly make a sound louder than a whisper. I looked around before gesturing Chopper closer. I whispered what I want to say into his ears, he nodded in understanding.

"Rein said that it is okay. And that she can see why you did what you did." Chopper tells him, "And also sorry for just spurting out things like that. She too was kind of panicking."

"But that still doesn't explained why she knows what she knows." Sabo stated, "I mean, Dadan, sure. But me? Our brother pact? How does she even know about that?"

"I told you, she read a mystery book and knows these things!" Luffy cried.

"That doesn't explain anything at all, Luffy!" Ace shouted.

"Yes it does!"

"No it doesn't!" They both shouted at him.

"Actually, Luffy isn't that far from the truth." Zoro stated, "Rein here came from another world where she read a book about our adventures here. She knows almost anything there is to know about anyone we may encounter."

"Another world? Come on, that's just dumb." Sabo stated, "I've heard better cover-ups than that."

"It is the truth." Sanji stated, "She has proven to us too. And her information has never been wrong once."

"But really? Another world?" Ace stated.

"Why don't you just let her prove it?" Usopp pointed out.

The two looked at me with pointed stare. I racked my brain for a moment before snapping my fingers. I know exactly what to say.

"…Ace's-oh hey! My voice is back!" I stated happily, "Anyway, Ace's first name is his mothers. His father is someone that should not be named. Oh, and Sabo is an ex-noble of Goa that left his family but was captured again by a pirate named Bluejam."

"…Okay… I'm kind of convinced…" Sabo nodded.

"Damn, another world?" Ace stated, "I mean, I'm from the New World and even then there's never any shit like this."

"New World?" Zoro asked.

"The other half of the Grand Line." I tells him.

"But I'm glad she's here." The fire fist smiled, "I mean, without her we probably would have never reunited."

"Yeah, that's true." Sabo smiled, "Thanks, Dragon Princess. We owe you one."

"I'M NOT A-GAK!" My throat burned the moment I stated to shout. Guess not there yet, huh?

"Stop talking already!" Chopper cried.

"But sorry I have to cut things short." Ace stated as he tears a sheet of paper into two and tossed Luffy and Sabo the two pieces.

"Huh? What's this?" Luffy asked.

"A Vivre Card, I believe?" Sabo stated, "Special paper that helps pinpoint its owner's location no matter how far they are."

"Oh, that's really handy." Nami stated surprised.

"I originally was going to just give Luffy, but since Sabo is alive now, might as well give you too." Ace smirked, "Having a reckless and naïve little brother does bring stress to an older brother, after all."

"Since when were you older than me, hm?" Sabo grins, "But you're right. Luffy's recklessness does worry me, and I still have my duties with the Revolutionary Army." He turns to us, "I'm sure he'll be a handful but please do take good care of him, okay?"

"Sure, we will." Zoro stated.

"What, you guys are leaving already?!" Luffy cried, "C'mon! Stay a little longer!"

"Sorry, but I'm a little busy." Ace stated as he leaped off the boat into his little dingy, "I'm currently chasing after someone. He has been apparently called himself 'Blackbeard' these days, but he used to be a member of the Whitebeard Pirates under the Second Division. He has committed the worst crime you can commit on a pirate ship."

"Killing a fellow crew member and then running away."

Crap! He's going to leave without knowing anything at this rate! "Ace, wait!" I cried as I walked up to the railing, "Blackbeard, Teach! *cough* He's not someone you can take on your own! Before you go after *cough*"

"Stop talking, Rein!" Chopper cried, "Your vocal cords are going to tear if you keep this up!"

"This is way too important!" I coughed out, "Ace! Teach has the power of the Dark-Dark fruit! He is a Logia of darkness with an ability that nullifies Devil Fruit abilities! Not only that, his powers are-"

"I know."

"…Huh?"

"A few days before Teach struck, Sen visited our ship." He stated, "When Teach took the Devil Fruit, it was he that told me its abilities and warned me about going at this alone."

"Sen…?" Wait, so he went and warn Whitebeard?! Damn, I didn't expect him to do such a thing!

"Even so, he has committed such heinous crime…" Ace added, "Old man had me finding him and ordered me to report back to him immediately after finding him. So I won't be taking him alone. The entire Whitebeard Pirates is going to lay down the smack on him."

Damn, I didn't foresee this change! For fucking Whitebeard to take immediate actions against Blackbeard, guess telling Sen about this is the best course of action after all…

"Luffy, the next time we meet, it will be at the summit." Ace tells him, "I'll be waiting."

"Right! See ya later!" Luffy waved as we watches Ace speeds off in his little mechanical boat.

"Guess it's my turn to leave." Sabo stated.

"What?! You too?! But we just see each other again!" Luffy cried.

"Sorry, but I came here without telling anyone." He tells me, "If I take any longer, my partner is going to chew me out even harder."

"Ah, before you go, Sabo!" I decided to take this chance, I mean when am I going to get such an opportunity? "Can you highlight to us how to use Haki?"

"Haki?" Zoro asked, "What is that?"

"Not surprised you know about that." He smirked, "I doubt you guys would need it this early in the Grand Line, but I guess I could leave some notes on how to use it."

"Much appreciated!"

"What is Haki, Rein?" Usopp asked.

"It's into spoiler territories, so I can't say too much." I stated, "But it is an ability we would need to learn in the future. I thought it would be best if I have some notes on it just in case."

"Really?" Zoro smirked, "Looking forward to it."

"Only you would think like that…" I stated as I collected the notes Sabo gathered for me.

"Well, I must be off!" Sabo tells us, "I'm sure Ace said this already, but please take good care of Luffy."

"We will!" We all called out as we watch Sabo leaped onto the murder of crows and flew away.

"…Damn, your brothers are… well…" Usopp stated, "Just… wow… Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates AND a member of the Revolutionary Army?"

"You got admit, whoever is related to Luffy is definitely far from the norm." Nami stated.

"Wait till you see his blood-related family." I snickered.

"…Okay, now I'm curious in a very grim way…" She stated.

"Hey, Nami! Mind sewing this to my hat?" Luffy asked.

"Sure, no problem." She stated as she receive his straw hat and proceeds to sew.

Now that's out of the way, time to check the notes out. I opened up the notes, reading a bit before creaking my head to the side in confusion. The words here aren't that consistence, and the explanation is rather complex…

I'll keep this for later.

* * *

After a few hours of sailing, at noon we reached a bunch of ruins in a city. In that time, I tried to change out of the outfit but Nami pretty much banned me from entering our room. After a little debate and a few exchanges of bills later, we manages to reach an impasse.

I won't change back into my normal attire, but I will change the skirt around my waist to a pair of hot pants from Vivi's wardrobe and the silk scarf changed to a short sleeved shirt left opened. And I'll be wearing my boots instead of the sandals.

Not much of a change, but at least I won't worry about flashing anyone with my movements.

Of course that is muted by the fact that I have to wear a large red robe over me.

My throat also has some bandages around it from the burns by Ace. Chopper said it wasn't that bad and my vocal chords seems to be unharmed by the fact I'm still able to talk.

Which is a miracle at its own right since I was sure my neck was completely burned off by Ace's fire. Maybe he held back?

"Now let's go look for this leader!" Luffy stated, "Where is he again?"

"Yuba, Luffy." I tells him, "We still have to cross the desert from here."

"Rein's right. We still have to walk northwest from here for about half a day." Vivi explained.

"Half a day?!" Usopp cried, "That's far!"

As Vivi explained the route to the crew, I take a gander around the coast. If I recalled correctly, there are a species of animals that lived around here. What was their species' name again…?

"Kuoo!"

I paused when I saw what seems to be a mixture of a dugong and a turtle leaped out of the water and landed in front of me. The hell are these cute things?

"Ah! That's a Kung Fu Dugong!" Vivi cried, "Be careful, Rein! They are really strong!"

And without any warning, the little creature rushed at me with a punch, which I dodged and then knocked down with a punch to the noggin. But then a sharp pain hit my knuckles a few seconds later, "GAH! OWOWOW! Are their skulls metal or what?!"

"AH! Don't beat it!" Vivi cried.

"Huh?"

"It's their custom for the loser to become the victor's disciple!"

And as of that, the dugong from before walked up to me and bowed to me in a real karate way. Huh? So I have a disciple now?

"Alright! Do it like this!" I shouted as I make the pose worthy of a Joestar.

"Kuo!" Which the little animal proceeds to mirror.

"And this!"

"Kuo!"

"And then this!"

"Kuo!"

"And then-"

"Enough playing around already!" Nami cried.

"Um, Nami…" Usopp stated as I notices where he is pointing and starts laughing my head off.

"No! Your stance is like this!"

"KUOOOO!"

"How many disciples do you have?!" Vivi cried as Luffy is teaching an entire herd of them.

"Nice, Luffy!" I laughed.

* * *

After a few debates and rebuttals, we manages to convince the dugongs to stay behind with a little convincing of food.

"Alright! Let's go to Yuba, then!" Luffy laughed.

"We lost a lot of our food supplies no thanks to you!" Sanji stated angrily.

"What would you have done if it weren't for Chopper?!" Nami cried, "And you!" She pointed at me, "What were you thinking?!"

"Hey, they attacked me, so I have to fight back!" I tells her, "It's a very natural reaction!"

"They kept saying they'd accompany us so I had no choice but to convince them with some food." Chopper explained.

"Then I'd just bring them along. What's the problem?" Luffy asked.

"How do you expect to walk into any city if we have a huge flock of dugongs with us?" Nami questioned, "Learn some common sense!"

"In any case, it's quite odd to see dugongs living in the river, Vivi-chan." Sanji pointed out.

"Hm? Oh, they live in the sea." Vivi explained, "For ages past, the Sandora River has nourished the lands of Alabasta. But in recent years, the river has lost its vigor and is now being driven inland by the ocean."

"So then, the mouth of the river where the dugongs were…"

"Yes, it's actually sea water. You can't use it to irrigate the lands around here."

"Is that why this town look so dried up?" Zoro asked.

"No, not quite…" She explained, "This town has manages to get by via storing the occasional rain water. Even just a few years ago, this place is filled with life."

"What happened?" I asked.

"Starting three years ago, our country has been suffering from a severe drought. A drought so severe that no place in Alabasta has received a single drop of water ever since."

"But that port town we visited earlier seems to be doing fine." Chopper mentioned.

"Nanohana's a special case, since it receives its water from the neighboring oasis town of Katorea." She explained, "This country's been through droughts before, but to receive not a single drop of rain is unheard of in the several thousands of years of our history. However, there was one place in Alabasta that somehow still receive rainfall, and in higher amounts than it would normally get.

"That place is Alubarna, the capital city of Alabasta where the royal family and the king resides."

"For a while, the people thought of it as the king's miracle. But that all changed after a certain incident. One day, a certain shipment arrived at Nanohana for the capital but it toppled over in the port revealing its contents. Dance Powder."

"Dance Powder?! They were delivering Dance Powder?!" Nami cried.

"Yes…" Vivi nodded grimly.

"Huh? You know what it is, Nami?" Luffy asked.

"It's commonly known as its nickname: The Powder that calls forth Rain." She explained, "It was invented in some country where rain were extremely rare. If the powder is sent into the atmosphere in a mist, it stimulate the formation of the ice particles in the clouds at sub-freezing temperature to later have it released as rain."

"Nami, idiots in the room." I pointed at our captain and first mate just staring at her blankly.

"…Basically, it's a powder that creates rain."

"Ah! I get it! So it's a mystery powder!" Luffy nodded.

"So it makes rain fall, is that what you meant?" Zoro pointed out.

"Hm? Wait, isn't it exactly what your country needs, Vivi?" Usopp stated.

"At first that is what people think." Nami stated, "The name 'Dance Powder' came from the fact that people danced for joy when it was invented in their country, but behind that blessing lies a great pitfall. Drought in the lands leeward!"

"Ah, I think I get it." I nodded, "If you stimulate rain from the clouds of a certain country, the other countries lying leeward from it would not receive the rain it normally should have."

"Oh, so it's like stealing rain from other countries!" Usopp nodded.

"Exactly." Nami stated grimly, "Once people realized that, wars were started and countless of lives have been lost. And that's why the World Government has officially banned producing or owning Dance Powder."

"So it's a powder that can be a blessing or a tragedy depending on how it is used, huh…?"

"Once that huge amount of Dance Powder was discovered at Nanohana, the entire nation finally realized the truth behind the capital's abnormally abundant rainfall." Vivi stated grimly, "And they even suspected my father from stealing their rain…"

"AH! Your father is like totally evil, Vivi!" Luffy cried.

"You idiot! He was obviously set-up!" Sanji shouted punting his feet on Luffy's head, "There's no way he'd actually do such a thing!"

"Thinking about it now, Crocodile's plans must have already been well underway back then…" Vivi stated, "My innocent father was completely dumbfounded by the incident. But the fact remained that a large amount of Dance Powder had been somehow delivered to the Royal Palace."

"It was all a trap laid out by Crocodile… and as intended, a rebellion rose up! The start of the bloody conflict between angry citizens who had lost their homes to the drought and the innocent government!"

"The country's peace, its trust in its king and the rain, people's homes, even their lives, all of it were stripped away because of that man. Because of Crocodile! What gives him the right to do such a thing?!"

"I WILL NEVER FORGIVE THAT MAN!"

As on cue, a building a far was knocked down hard. I knew who did that, as I had my hand tightly on my sword's handle the entire time she spoke. What Crocodile did is definitely unforgiveable, but what's really unforgivable…

Is him forcing this princess to risk her life in an attempt to save her country.

And for making Vivi, our friend, so frustrated to the extent of almost crying…

That to us, is the ultimate sin.

Just you wait, Crocodile. We'll skin you up soon enough!

* * *

"Ughh…!~!"

I didn't expect just walking through the desert is such a horrendous ordeal…

The blazing heat, the dry air, not the mention the bright sun beating down on us every second and the lack of wind. If we're not too prepared, we would have easily die out here. I'm not unfamiliar with hot climates, I'm from Singapore, it's pretty much hot and warm the entire year.

But it is still humid there, so it wasn't that unbearable. The dry air is what killing me right now. It's like being in an oven turned to the highest temperature possible.

"Can you please stop panting like that, Luffy?" Nami asked, "Just hearing it is tiring me out…"

"Ugghhh… I'm roasting up…" He groaned, "I can't even sweat anymore…"

"You and me both…" I groaned, "I think the heat is killing my throat again…"

"I'm done for…" I hear Chopper groaned, the poor guy has completely knocked out the first few meters and has to be dragged along the sand by Zoro on a makeshift sled, "I'm fine with the cold, but the heat is no good…"

"It's because you're so fluffy…" Usopp stated tiredly, "You should try and take that fur coat off…"

"Like hell I can!" He shouted changing into his full-humanoid form.

"GYA! A MONSTER!"

"Oi, Chopper!" Zoro shouted annoyed, "I'm not going to pull you if you turn big!"

"You seem to be holding up pretty well, Vivi-chan." Sanji stated.

"Well, I was born and raised in this country, after all."

"But man, what is with these hills?" Usopp stated, "It's like we're hiking up a mountain or something."

"This is a very old desert." Vivi explained, "Some of the larger sand dunes here reach over 300 meters."

"T-Three hundred…?! I thought this was a desert, not a mountain range…"

"W-Water…"

"Remember Luffy, one gulp." Nami tells him, "Just enough to moisten your throat."

"Right…"

And he did that one gulp. One very large gulp from the looks of his bulgy cheeks.

"TOO MUCH, YOU ASS!" I shouted as I knocked him in the head causing him to spit back out the water.

"Give ME some water!" Usopp cried, "You just had like 13 gulps in one!"

"No! You had your turn before him!" Sanji cried, "It's my turn to drink next!"

"I pull the sick card here!" I yelled, "I deserve a sip!"

"Please stop fighting!" Vivi cried, "You're only going to tire yourselves out even more!"

"Hey, Sanji! Let's open up that special Pirate Lunchbox now!" Luffy stated excitedly.

"No. Not until Vivi-chan says okay." The blonde cook tells him.

"Vivi! Please let us have lunch already!" Usopp moaned, "I don't have any strength to go on any longer…"

"I'm sorry, but we're only a quarter of the way to Yuba right now…"

"Quarter…?! That felt way more than a few miles…!" I moaned.

"Well, that's a pretty stupid reason!" Luffy huffed, "Haven't you heard a proverb, [Eat when the stomach growls.]?"

"Hey, don't make shit up just to retort…" Usopp deadpanned him.

"Seriously though, I really doubt we are going to make it any further without nourishment…" I stated tiredly.

"Alright then, how about a break right at the next rock we walk by sound?" The princess suggested.

"Woohoo! A rock we go! Rock! Where are you?!"

"That's not going to make it appear, Luffy."

* * *

"So… heavy…! So heavy… and hot…!"

"Hey, it's your fault that you lost in rock-paper-scissors and have to carry all our stuff." Sanji tells our captain who is carrying all our bags for us.

"Make sure not to drop our bags!" Nami called out.

"Ugh…"

"Don't worry! We should be close to a rock soon!" I stated, though a bit not confident in that.

"ROCK! Sighted at 12 o'clock!" Usopp suddenly cried.

"REALLY?!" Luffy cried happily.

"WAIT!" I stated firmly before sitting down on our bags, "Okay! Mush onwards, captain!"

"YEAH! BREAK TIME!"

"Hey, no fair!" Nami shouted.

"You snooze, you lose!" I laughed as the two of us speeds down the sands towards the rocks up ahead. I never felt so happy to be in a shade again.

"Ah~! Finally, a shade~!" Luffy sighs happily.

"I'm cooling down already~!" I sighed.

"Hm?" Luffy then notices something. "Ah! There are injured birds here!"

"WHAT?!" I stated looking at where he saw, and then deadpanned. Okay, they are sure good actors but trust me, I have seen injured birds before, and they are definitely not it.

"They don't look like they're going to make it." I tells him sadly.

"WHAT?! C-Chopper can save them!"

"Don't bother…" I sighed, "Allow me to put them out their misery." I unsheathed my sword and positioned them right above one of their heads, "It is the least I can do."

"GOH!"

And just as I said that, they starts running away in a panic. I smiled happily that I out swindled the swindler, "And that's how you deal with swindlers." I stated proudly as I sheathes my sword.

"Huh? They were faking it?" Luffy stated in surprised, "Why?"

"Bet that they are planning on stealing our things once our heads are turned." I explained.

"WHAT?! Those thieving no-good birds!" My captain shouted in anger, "Get back here, you birds!" I watch as he runs out into the desert after them.

"Huh? Where did Luffy go?" Nami asked me as the rest of our crew arrived in the shade.

"Oh, there are these birds that were faking injuries to try and steal our supplies, so I scare the heck out of them." I smirked, "Then Luffy went off chasing after them."

"God damn, that idiot!" Usopp groaned, "Just when we reached a nice place to rest, too!"

"Wait, are you saying you met some Swindle-Herons?!" Vivi cried, "I've heard they are really hard to point out! How do you even notice?!"

"Is that what they're called?" I wonders, "Anyway, I have hunted many animals in my training with Sen, so I know how normally an injured bird would be acting. That, and they have no injuries except for some dirt over their feathers."

"Remind to never attempt to lie to you, ever." Usopp stated.

"AARRGGGGGHHHHHHH!"

"What now…?" Nami groaned.

We all turned around to see Luffy running towards us in a panic, this time with a camel with him. And then I notices what he is being chased by. A freaking enormous lizard the ship of a fucking tanker! I mean, how does such an animal even exists?!

"A Sandora Monitor Lizard!" Vivi cried, "They are the apex predators of the desert!"

"It's huge!" Usopp cried.

"That's an understatement!" I chimed in crying.

"Setting aside the fact there is a camel with him now, we now have to deal with this thing…?" Sanji stated.

"Just what kind of star was he born under?!" Zoro groaned as he readied his sword.

"Gum-Gum…"

"Dragon…"

"Epaule…"

The monster trio of our group readied and charged right at the lizard monster.

"WHIP!"

"TWISTER!"

"SHOOT!"

And with one swift simultaneous strike, the three of them took down the hulking beast without breaking a sweat, much to our shock and surprise.

"…To think that they'd go so far against a poor animal…" Usopp stated in shock.

"Yeah, you really gotta sympathize with the poor beast when it's against those three…" Nami pointed out.

"Talk about bad luck on its end…" I added in.

* * *

After cutting the poor lizard up, Sanji starts cooking up the meat with the rocks that were exposed to the sun. Huh, talk about nature's barbeque.

"So… what's with that camel?" Zoro asked Luffy.

"I don't know. I was busy chasing those birds, but then they flew away." He explained, "Before I knew it, there was this large lizard in front of me chasing this camel. That's about when I started running back here."

"It doesn't look like a wild camel, with the saddle on it and all that." Nami stated.

"Hey, that means we can ride it!" Usopp stated happily.

"Oh, that would be useful." Vivi exclaimed, "It looks like up to two people can ride on it. Nothing beats a camel when walking across the desert!"

"That would make things a lot easier." I stated happily.

"Alright then! I'll just-"

As soon as Luffy starts to climb onto it, the camel bites down on his head hard much to our surprise.

"'I'm a harmless camel passing-by. I must thank you for saving my life back there just now. Now, although I can give you humans a ride, I'm not the type to gives males a ride.' …is what he said." Chopper translated.

"Isn't he just some pervert then?!" I cried as I watch our guys started pummeling on the animal, "I'm not riding on that thing's back!"

"Oh come on, it's not that bad." Nami laughed, "I mean, it's just a camel." She walked up to the nearly bruised up camel and rubbed its chin gently, "Sorry for these bandits treating you so badly~ there, there~ Now, what should I name you?"

"Idiot."

"Dumbass."

"Octopus."

"Octopus? Why?" I asked Usopp.

"Seems appropriate."

"Oh! How about Eyelashes?" Nami sated happily.

"I think that's the weirdest name that has ever been suggested…" Zoro stated.

"Hey, Vivi! Get on!" Nami tells our princess as the camel kneel down to allow passengers to board.

"Oh, no, I'm fine. I can still walk some more." Vivi tells her.

"Oh just get on." She tells her, "We should be able to reach Yuba a bit sooner now that we have a camel."

Hesitantly, Vivi did get on the camel and without a second to waste, the two dashed off into the desert at top speeds. And leaving the rest of us behind.

"HEY! WAIT FOR US!" We all yelled at her as we struggled to collect our supplies and rushes after them.

"Hurry up, you guys! If you keep lagging behind, you might not survive the desert, you know?"

"Are you for real?!"

"Oh~! You're still as cute as ever even when you're being cruel, Nami-swan~!"

"AH! Luffy, don't eat that!"

* * *

After several painstaking hours and running to catch up the Nami and Eyelashes, the sun finally set on us as the temperature dropped as well. Okay, have you even like walk into an air-conditioned room in the middle of a really hot day? Yeah, this is what it felt like, only several times colder.

"Hey, I think I saw something." I tells them.

"Oh! Is it Yuba?" Luffy asked.

"Must be." Vivi nodded, "This is the place but… something's wrong…"

As we approached the supposed town, the winds starts to pick up fast as the sand starts to swirl around us, as if it's a-

"SANDSTORM!" Vivi cried, "Quick! Everyone duck down!"

We all did as she instructed, as most of us tries to cover our faces with the scarves at hand. The sandstorm soon passed over after a few minutes, only to reveal the horrible reality behind the town.

Everything is deserted. All the trees have toppled over and sand piled up all over the place, even places that supposedly once contained water is filled with the damn thing. It was a ghost town.

"Oh my god…" Vivi muttered in shock.

"What happened here…?" I wondered.

"What a mess! It is just like that abandoned town of Elumalu!" Zoro stated.

"Where's the water?!" Luffy cried.

"Wasn't this supposed to be an oasis, Vivi-chan?" Sanji asked, "I don't see any signs of water anywhere."

"Look at all this sand…!" She muttered, "It must have swallowed up the Oasis!"

"Travelers, eh? Well then, you must be awfully tired…"

We all turned to the source of that voice, a wrinkly old man digging into the sand with a shovel right in the middle of the town, "Sorry, but this town is a little bit dried up, right now." He tells us, "But you folks ought to rest for the night. We got plenty of rooms in the inn to spare. That's one of the things Yuba is known for."

"But in this sorry state…?" I stated looking around at the deserted town, "Just how did this happen?"

"Excuse me, but I heard that the Rebel Army were using this town as their base." Vivi asked, "Is that true-"

"You got business with those rebels?!" The old man glared at us, "Don't tell me you're another bunch of degenerates that wants to join the Rebel Army?! Get the hell out of this town at once if that's true!" He then starts tossing all sorts of items at us to try to chase us off.

"AH! What's this old man?!" Sanji cried, "Why is he flipping out all of the sudden?!"

"Those fools… they are no longer in this town."

"WHAT?!"

"I-It can't be!" Vivi cried.

"You saw that sandstorm just now, right?" He tells us, "Well, that wasn't the first one that hit this town. Ever since the drought three years ago, this town has been hit regularly by sandstorms! And because of that, the oasis is now in this sorry state."

"Trade caravans stopped showing up here, and the rebels realized that they couldn't hold out much longer here. So they relocated their base to Katorea."

"K-Katorea?!"

"Where's that, Vivi?!" Luffy asked.

"It's an oasis town beside Nanohana!"

"NANOHANA?!"

"Wait, so we were going on the opposite direction?!" I cried, before recalling something, "…Oh right… Now I remember…"

"Wait, you knew?!" Vivi shouted angrily at me grabbing me by the robes, "All this time, you knew we were going on the wrong way and you never said anything?!"

"I-I forgot!" I shouted, "It's been a long time since I read the book, and with the thing with Ace and Sabo, it completely slipped my mind!"

"Thousands of lives are at stake here, and you somehow FORGOT the most important detail?!" She shouted.

"Hey, like you're any better!" I screamed back, "You nearly slip up and revealing Crocodile's name if I didn't stop you in time! Oh, how about you not mentioning any of the dangerous wildlife out here?!"

"This is no time to be arguing!" Nami cried, "We need to head back to Nanohana right now!"

"Vivi…? Did you just say, Vivi?"

"Ah! Vivi's not the princess or anything, if that's what you're thinking!" Luffy cried.

"Shut up!" Zoro yelled slamming him in the head.

"Um, no! I-I'm not…!"

"Vivi? Princess Vivi, is that you…?"

"H-Huh?"

"I'm so glad you're still alive!" The old man cried happily as he hugged onto her, "It's me! Don't you recognise me?! I know I have lost some weight the past three years, but…"

"…To…Toto…? Is that you, Toto?!" Vivi cried.

"Yes, Vivi! It is me!" The now-named Toto tells her.

"W-What happened to you…?!" She gasped in shock.

"Princess Vivi…! I still believe in the king!" Toto stated crying rivers of tears, "He's not the type to ever betray his countrymen like this! I'm right, aren't I? Those rebels, my son, they are all out of their minds!" He kneels down in front of her begging, "Please! You have to stop them! PLEASE! You're the only one who can!"

"Toto…!"

"So what if there hasn't be any rain for the past three years?! I still believe in the king! And I'm sure most of the other citizens still do too! I've tried, over and over again, but they won't stop! But their supplies are running low, and they know they can't hold out for much longer."

"So they plan on settling things once and for all in their next offensive! They all lost their minds! They are nothing but suicidal at this point! Please, Princess Vivi, you have to stop them! You have to stop those fools!"

"…Toto, please don't worry anymore." Vivi tells him handing him a handkerchief, "I'll stop the rebels, no matter what!"

I saw the way she smiled, she is faking it.

She's trying to put on a brave front of the old man. And the way she says it…

* * *

In the end, we all retired into one of the abandoned inns to rest up for the day.

"Good work, everyone! You must be all exhausted by now, so why don't we all get some rest so we have enough energy for tomorrow?" Usopp suggested before jumping into the bed, "Well, good night-"

"You hardly did anything!" Zoro shouted as he tossed a pillow at him.

"Yeah, that's right! Got a problem with that?!" He shouted back as he tossed back his pillow in retaliation, "Don't compare me to monsters like you people!"

"Oh… it's a fight, you want? Is that it?"

"And don't just insult me! What about blue-nose over there?! He's pretty much useless the entire day too!" He declared throwing a pillow into Chopper's head.

"I told you! I'm not good with the heat!" The reindeer cried angrily.

"Um… Sanji, this is my bed…" Vivi tells the blonde cook who is lying on the mattress.

"Oh, I assumed you might need someone to comfort you while you sleep, so-"

"Ulterior motive, pervert!" I shouted as I tossed a pillow right at his head.

"Hey, who throw that?!"

"Can you keep it down?! Someone's trying to get some shut-eye here!" Nami shouted.

"And this is for leaving us behind!" I throw another one right at her face.

"Why you…"

"PILLOW FIGHT!" Usopp declared as we start throwing our weapons right at each other relentlessly. I manages to get several good hits on Zoro and Nami, while Usopp demonstrating how good of a shot he is by performing incredible throws that should be impossible with pillows.

In the end, we all tired each other out and everyone fell deep in slumber.

Well, almost everyone.

I'm still somewhat awake, a bit worried about what's going to happen next. After this, Vivi is sure to make us head for Katorea right away, not knowing the real reason for Crocodile's true motive and his end game.

But knowledge of such weapons are punishable by death, or worse. Nico Robin is a testament of that warped law. So how can I bring it up without invoking Buster Call on this country just because of my big mouth?

Although that's not the main problem.

It is obvious Vivi still thinks she is alone in this fight; that we aren't supposed to get involved any more than we already had. Such thoughts are unhealthy for her. And it could lead her down a very bad path for her to take.

I need to stop her from thinking like that. But how…?

"Rein, you up?"

I opened one eye to my surprise, Vivi hovering over me with a certain look in her eyes.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

"No, no… just… can we talk?" She asked, "Somewhere private, perhaps…?"

* * *

After leaving our sleeping crew back in the inn, we decided to talk right outside at the back. "So? What is it?" I asked her.

"…In that book of yours…" She stated fearfully, "Did I manage to stop the war in time…?"

"…" I'm not sure what to answer. I could tell her the truth but that might shatter her hope and that's not what we need to handle right now. But I can't just lie to her…

"…Not good, isn't it…?"

"Huh?"

"The war." She stated wrapping her arms around herself, "That… mistake… I wanted to stop it… I really do. But the odds keep piling up! I thought I might be able to stop it if we made it to Yuba, but I just making it inevitable! Everything I did, it's useless!"

"Vivi…"

"Why?!" She cried tearing pouring from her eyes, falling on her knees sobbing, "Why isn't anything I did working?! Where did I go wrong?! Is because I'm useless? That I'm not even able to save my own country?! Why is it, that man, that _monster_ , is succeeding and I'm failing?!"

"…It's because you're looking at it the wrong way." I tells her finally. This isn't the time to sugar-coat anything. She needs this, whether she knows it or now.

"W-Wrong…way…?"

"You think that stopping the war would bring a stop to Crocodile's plans, which isn't true." I stated, "That man has this plan going on for three years. He planned out everything, and have contingency plans for almost every scenario he can think of."

"Stopping the war is definitely in one of his plans. Trying to fight him is definitely one of his plans. You trying to sacrifice yourself is also part of his plan. Nothing you could come up with is going to change that."

Seeing Vivi's hopes just crashed really hurts my heart, but I have to continue.

"You are just one princess against an entire organization." I added on, "It's like an ant against a hornet's nest. That's how impossible the odds are against you this whole time."

"…So… it's pointless then…" She stated sadly, "There's no way to stop his plans…"

"But if they have a hornet's nest, we're a horde." I smirked, as she looked at me in confusion. "Sure he may have plans against whatever you do, but he doesn't have plans for what WE can do."

"W-We…?"

"Vivi, you're not fighting alone in this!" I stated firmly as I kneel down to her, "You have us, your friends, your comrades-in-arms! You don't have to deal with it on your own!"

"So count on us! We'll deal with Crocodile in no time!"

"…" Vivi looked at me with a stunned expression, before chuckling as tears flowed once more, "You're right… I have you guys now… I'm not alone in this fight!" She stood back up quickly, "And with you guys, we can defeat Crocodile!"

"Good!" I stated standing back up, "So, where do you think Crocodile is at now?"

"Rainbase." She stated with a fierce determination burning in her eyes, "It is just north of here. We can reach there within a day if we leave in the morning."

I smirked, "Then Rainbase we go! We're going to skin that reptile a new one!"

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Done! Okay, the last part is a little… well, I'll see how it goes. I thought Vivi in that scene is just burdened with so many things that she is just forcing herself to smile. And with knowledge of the future so close to her, she wanted to assure herself that she'll succeed.**

 **So, after this, it is Rainbase time! Won't that be a party?**

 **And I hope I settled that Ace, Sabo and Luffy reunion well... If it feels rather OOC, let me know!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	18. Ch 18:The Rainbase Chase!

**Chapter 18: The Rainbase Chase!**

* * *

Once morning rises, me and Vivi tells everyone our new plan of attack. No one disagreed, and once we made plans and packed up and make our way through the desert.

"So, how is Rainbase faring in the drought?" I asked.

"It is faring pretty well all things considered…" Vivi stated, "Compared to the other regions, Rainbase thrived as a vibrant casino town."

"Casino?!" Nami cheered happily as her eyes lit up with the thought of quick cash.

"Don't get any strange ideas now…" Zoro sighed tiredly.

"So there are some towns unaffected by the war…" Sanji said in surprise.

"Will there be water there?" Chopper asked worriedly.

"Plenty." She assures him.

"Gum-Gum No Way!"

"Come on! Just a sip! We finally have some water, so let me have some!"

"Are they still at it?" Sanji asked.

By that, he meant how Usopp is trying to get some water from Luffy's little barrel he got from Toto back at Yuba. Apparently, when we went to sleep, he carried on digging, before finally reaching the water below. It wasn't much, but he still gave it to our captain.

And considering that we pretty much drained our supplies just reaching Yuba, it was a godsend.

Although Luffy has made it pretty apparent that he is not going to waste that small barrel away like the others.

"This is all the water that old man spent all last night digging up!" He cried, "I'm not going to let you or anyone drink it away that easily!"

"Oh, so you _do_ have some self-restraint." Nami pointed out in surprise.

"Of course I do! How rude!"

"I'll let you have a sip from my share Usopp." I tells him handing him the barrel on my waist, "It's just a few sips full though…"

"Alright, alright, let's get a move on." Zoro tells us as he starts walking off, in the wrong direction.

"Zoro, north is back this way."

"…I knew that."

"Liar."

* * *

After a full day of trekking, with our supplies finally dried up, we finally reached Rainbase.

"We're finally here!" Usopp sighed happily.

"ALRIGHT! TIME TO KICK CROCODILE'S ASS!" Luffy cheered excitedly.

"You guys sure are noisy…" Zoro sighed.

"WADUH!" Chopper and Usopp shouted hoarsely due to their dry throats.

"Some water would be nice…" I groaned feeling my throat. The bandages already off with my throat as good as new. It was a surprise that there were no sign of the burns on it at all.

"Want me to get you some, Rein-chan?" Sanji asked with a smile.

"No thanks."

"Rejected." Zoro stated.

"I'm not asking you, asshole!"

"By the way, does BW know that we're currently in the country?" He asked Vivi.

"Yes, most likely…" She stated grimly, "Not only did we run into Mr. 2, but Mr. 3 is also somewhere in this country. I can't imagine BW would still be in the dark about us."

"So what if they know?" Luffy asked.

"Well, if they know our faces, we can't really take any overt actions." Usopp tells him.

"Huh?! Why not?!"

"There might be a lot of BW agents teeming all over in Rainbase. If any one of them spots us, then Crocodile will know we're coming and plan ahead. Then there's no way we can get to him."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't have at least three contingency plans in case of such a scenario." I pointed out.

"True, and let's not forget their specialty is assassination." Zoro added in.

"ALRIGHT THEN! COME ON OUT! CROCODILE!"

"Didn't you hear what I just said, you idiot?!" The sniper cried as knocking our idiot of a captain on the head.

"Anyway, even if any of Baroque Works come for us, I'll be there to protect Nami-san, Vivi-chan and Rein-chan." Sanji smirked, "Call me a 'Prince', ladies!"

"Refused." I deadpanned.

"Prince." Zoro decided to say.

"I said ladies, you idiotic swordsman!"

* * *

"Do you think _maybe_ we shouldn't have sent the two of them to get water?" Sanji pointed out.

"It's just a little errand." Nami assures him, "I'm sure they can handle it, no problems."

"I don't know…" Zoro stated grimly, "They might just bring back trouble instead, like our captain always have. It might not be a good idea to be TOO relaxed now…"

"Agree with you there." I nodded sadly. Luffy, I love you, man; but you are a magnet for anything trouble!

And case in point, the marines all decided to show up out of nowhere chasing Luffy and Usopp who are currently running towards us.

"Oh crap! The marines on their tails!" Sanji pointed out in shock.

"No, that can't be!" Nami cried, "And why are they running this way?!"

"Too late for regrets now!" I shouted, "Let's book it!"

"Wait! Tony haven't come back yet!" Vivi stated.

"Don't worry, he'll figure something out!" Zoro assures her as we ran as fast as we can down the streets when Luffy and Usopp caught up to us.

"Guys! The marines are here!" Luffy shouted.

"Yeah! No thanks to you!" Our swordsman shouted at our captain.

"Don't let them escape this time!" I hear one of the marines shouted as we book it down the streets as fast as possible.

"Isn't it bad to run around town like this?!" Usopp suddenly stated, "We'll be spotted by BW agents!"

"We already have!" I tells him, glancing at the mercenaries all looking at us with a picture in their hands.

"Then let's go!" Luffy shouted, "Let's go meet Crocodile, Vivi!"

"…Alright!" She nodded before pointing out, "He's in that building with that crocodile on top, do you see it? That's Rain Dinners, the casino owned by Crocodile."

"Crocodile on a pyramid. How original." I deadpanned.

"We better split up then." Sanji pointed out.

"Right." Zoro nodded.

"Okay then! Let's all meet up at Crocodile's house!" Luffy commanded as we all took different routes. I decided to stick with Vivi and Zoro, mostly because I'm worried that our swordsman may end up lost if left unsupervised.

As we took down the road, we ended up surrounded by marine soldiers.

"This is bad…" Vivi stated.

"You go on ahead." Zoro tells her, "Rein, keep her safe."

"Don't get killed!" I tells him as the two of us took off behind the alleyway, just as sounds of fighting can be heard right behind us.

* * *

I hold my ground as I found myself surrounding at all sides by Baroque Works's agents, the Billions if I recall what Vivi stated before. I manages to hold them off long enough for Vivi to take off, but now I'm left dealing with the mooks.

"Damn, you guys are like termites!" I stated angrily, "Just when you think you thinned them out, more shows up out of the woodwork."

"Heh, heh, why don't you just surrender, Dragon Princess?" One of the goons chuckles, "And then maybe we'll go easy on you. Perhaps show you how to give a lady a great time~?"

"Keep it in your pants, perverts." I growled as I readied my sword.

Soon, they all charged at me with swords armed and ready to cut me down, I ready to fight back with equal force.

The first one strike at me which I dodges rather easily and then cut down before cutting down another. They all keep coming at me, and I keep cutting them down one after another. The bodies soon build up as more of them are slain by my blade.

But if they are anything but relentless. They really have the number advantage down to the math, they knowing how to pace themselves and not get in each other way while wearing me down.

And I hate to say it, but it is working.

"Getting tired?" One of them laughed, "Why not rest for a while? We'll make it SUPER comfortable."

"Why don't I cut that dick of yours and feed it to you?!" I shouted back at him.

"I rather feed it to you!" He shouted as the rest all charged at me.

And within a second, a spear was seen stabbing one of them through the heart, before he was swung all around and slamming his comrades into the walls all over. The chain-link retracted as the spear was pulled back towards its owner, who reconnected it to its other half as she held it over her shoulders lazily.

"Suiren…?"

"What are you doing?!" One of the Billions shouted, "We're just bounty hunters! You can't just end us!"

"Try me." She stated, "I have questions for you Rein, but guess I'll have to deal with these assholes first."

"Thanks." I stated as I readied my stance, "I owe you one."

After a full minute of fighting, the both of us are the only ones left on the streets with a lot of either dead or unconscious bounty hunters lying all around.

I panted out tiredly before sheathing Raitou, "So… I'm guessing you wanted to know why I join up with the Straw Hats."

"…Not really." She shrugged, "Nezumi was and always will be a greedy rat, and I'm glad he is discharged and put to jail."

Nezumi is in jail?! Nice! Karma's a bitch!

"What I'm really want to know is why the missing princess of Alabasta is playing pirates with you people." She pointed out, "And these people, they aren't your typical bounty hunters. Too organized and united. Not to mention the marks they have."

"Marks…?" I then recalled something like that seen on some people, marks of the BW's Jolly Roger.

"Those marks are of pirates, not one known though. And the only pirates besides you guys I know are in this country is that Warlord, Crocodile." She stated, "So, from what Smoke told me, you guys have some business with Crocodile, and it somehow is related to this damn civil war and their princess being in your custody."

"…Damn, you're sharp." I pointed out surprised, "No wonder you made captain."

"Answer the damn questions, Rein!" She shouted pointing her spear at me, "Or I'll make you talk."

"…It's a long story…" I sighed as I starts to explain it to her.

I told her everything, from what Vivi was doing this whole time, to the existence of Baroque Works, to Crocodile's true persona, to the reasons we are here, to that asshole's plan, I told it all. I didn't say anything about why he is doing this, she doesn't need that knowledge with her; it would ruin her career if she knows even the name of that thing.

"And that's the rundown of it all."

"…Baroque Works… Crocodile…" She muttered, "Huh, Smoker was right. Crocodile isn't someone to be trusted."

"He's a slimy reptile that one." I tells her before proceeding to walk away, "So, if you excuse me, I'm going to need to group up with my crew."

"…This doesn't change anything." She tells me firmly, "I'm a marine, and you're a pirate."

"I know, and you chase me, and I ran from you, right?" I stated, "It doesn't matter, just glad to see you again."

"Why a pirate, Rein?" She asked, "Back at Risa, you help fight off pirates with us. I know you have a sense of justice in you. So why? Why a criminal, Rein?!"

"…I thought you weren't going to ask…" I muttered tiredly, "Are the Straw Hats really criminals? Did we do anything that render our arrest? I can tell you this."

"We did nothing of the sorts. We didn't do anything that other pirates would normally do. We save a princess, for starters. But we never kill indiscriminately. Nor do we pillage, plunder, or rape. All we did was to be free, we run away from the law sure, but we never really go against it."

"And to why, you ask?" I smiled, "Because I wanted to see my captain achieve his dreams, as much as I wanted to achieve mine."

"…And what is that?"

I raised my hand up into the sky as I walked away from her.

"To have the GREATEST ADVENTURE EVER!"

* * *

After a long while of running, I finally made it to somewhere near Rainbase. I looked around to see if I can see any of my crew, but just barely made out Crocodile rushing down a street a far distance away from where I am.

"…Why is he…?"

"Ah, Rein!"

I looked down to see the source of that voice, Chopper seen down there in front of me in what seems to be Sanji's robes tied all around his body.

"Chopper? What's going on?" I asked, "Where's the rest of them?"

"Ah! Sanji went in to Rain Dinners to save them!" He tells me. So it is that part of the plot now? That means that we would need to get some transport soon.

"Chopper, go find that camel and go get some big transport." I tells him, "Anything will do, as long it is big and fast."

"O-Okay! But we'll need some supplies along the way…" He pointed out.

"Leave that part to me."

He nodded before running off down the street stripping Sanji's robes. I looked around for any BW agents before rushing down a street.

After a few turns, I made it to a shop that looks like it sells what we need.

I made it inside and walk up to the counter and produced a decent wad of cash for the cashier sitting there, a man in his thirties at best wearing a turban with a dark grey robe while smoking a pipe, "I need a couple barrels of water and a bag of dried food."

"Rushing, are we?" The cashier smirked, blowing out some smoke from his pipe, I decided to give him a small glare, "Alright, alright, give me a sec." He walked back into his storeroom, a few moments later came back out with some barrels of water and a large bag

"This is all I can give right now." He stated, "The drought is a killer on the crops and the price of water has rose beyond what I can normally afford. So these are stolen goods."

"…That would do." I'm not even going to question where he stole it from.

Hurling the barrel on my shoulders while piggybacking the bag on my back, I took off out of the store to look for Chopper.

* * *

Back at the store, the moment Rein left, the cashier emptied out his pipe on a tray.

"So… that's Sen's new apprentice, eh…" He smirked.

Slight movement can be seen, as a man of similar physique is tied up and gagged right under the counter.

* * *

After some running, I made it to the edge of town where there's a giant crab waiting for me. I'm not even going to question it with the rush of things going on so I just leaped up to join with the rest of the crew, "Hey, got us some water and grub."

"Oh, nice!" Zoro smirked as he dug into the bag.

"Let's go, Chopper!" Nami tells him.

"Alright, then!" Chopper commanded the crab, "Let's go!" And the crab took off at blazing speeds, although it is running sideways like of its species, "And we're off!"

"AH!"

I turned back and saw Vivi getting pulled back on a hook at the end of a sand trail in the air. Fucking Crocodile!

"Vivi!" Usopp cried.

"Chopper! Stop the crab!" Zoro tells him.

"It's him!" Luffy shouted before leaping up and grabbing the hook. With a swift move, he tossed Vivi off onto the crab while he remained on the hook.

"Luffy!"

"That idiot!" Sanji stated as we all readied to save him.

"Go on ahead!" He tells us, "I'll be fine by myself! You guys make sure to get her home! Get Vivi to the palace!"

"Luffy, wait! There's two of them!" Nami cried.

"That idiot…" Zoro growled.

"…Move the crab, Chopper!" I tells him, "Full speed to Alubarna!"

"G-Got it!"

"Wait, what?! You're going to just leave him behind?!" Usopp cried.

"Luffy!" Vivi cried out for our captain.

"Don't worry about him, Vivi! He'll be fine!" Nami assures her, "If anything, we should feel sorry for Crocodile! There hasn't been an enemy that Luffy can't beat!"

"Listen up, Vivi." Zoro tells her, "Luffy will hold down Crocodile here. When the rebels decided to march on to the capital, the time limit for this country's lifespan was set. This country will fall once the rebels clash with the royalists! If you're the only hope there is of stopping all of that, then you have to survive, no matter what!"

"No matter what happens to any one of us here, you have to continue on!"

"B-But…"

"Vivi-chan, this is a fight you set up." Sanji tells her, "You left your country for several years to go against an organization you knew almost nothing about. But, don't think you're fighting alone anymore."

"V-V-V-V-Vivi! D-Don't y-y-y-y-you worry!" Usopp stuttering badly, "I-I-I-I-I'll…"

"Concentrate on what's ahead for now." I tells her, "Like I said, if there's one thing Crocodile didn't plan on, is us."

"…Luffy!" She shouted out towards our captain, "We'll be waiting for you! At Alubarna!"

"Alright!" We hear him shouts back as Rainbase soon disappeared over the horizon.

* * *

I stared silently over into the desert, as the sun set around us. I couldn't keep my hands from twitching over my sword, my thumbing pushing the blade in and out of the sheath a few times.

"Rein." Vivi asked me, "Is Luffy going to win?"

"…" I looked away guilty, "…no, he isn't."

"WHAT?!" Nami cried as she pulls on my robes hard, "Then you should have said something! We would have gone back and drag him back with us!"

"He needs to lose, Nami!" I tells her, "This is a battle that he would find out his weakness! And it is a lesson to him!"

"A… lesson?"

"That Warlords are Warlords for a reason." I stated, "Crocodile has too much pride, but he was made into a Warlord for good reasons. And if I just say his weakness right there, he'll take precautions. So Luffy needs to find that out on his own."

"But that guy would kill him!" Usopp cried.

"No, he won't die." I stated smiling, "He will lose that fight, but he'll survive, stronger than ever. We just have to make sure Alubarna remains in one piece until then."

Everyone all looked at me, before returning to their own businesses at hand.

I looked down at my sword at hand, I mentally prepared myself for the fight up ahead. This is it, the final leg of this arc. Everyone would be fighting an officer agent… What can I do to help with that…?

* * *

"WHAAATT?! This crab can't cross rivers?!" Usopp cried as the image of the Sandora River is coming up.

"Mover Crabs are desert creatures! So it's natural they can't swim!" Vivi stated.

"B-But it's a crab!"

"By the way, crabs don't swim, they just move about on the ocean floor." I pointed out.

"Not the time, Rein!" He shouted at me, "It'll take forever if we try to swim across this huge river! Not only that, we still have several tens of kilometers to go after that! If this crab can't cross this river, that means we have to run the rest of the way on foot! There's no way we can make it on time!"

"Oh crap! The river is already right in front of us!" Sanji pointed out.

"Please, Scissors! Do something!" Nami cried.

"That's it, we're not letting Nami name anything else from on." I declared.

"Again, not the time!" Usopp yelled at me.

"Ah! That's it! Scissors love dancer girls!" Chopper pointed out.

"Will this do?" Nami asked tossing away the robes to reveal the dancer outfit underneath.

"Yeah, that will do!" He nodded.

"Why not a triple show~?" Sanji cooed.

"I'm not stripping this off." I stated firmly, "And leave Vivi out of this."

The crab's eyes turned back to us, I saw his eyes swirled all over Nami before turning into hearts as his speed skyrockets, trailing down towards the river in mach speeds.

"Go! Ero-power!" Chopper cheered.

"I think you broke two other animals here…" Zoro pointed out, Sanji and the camel both knocked out with hearts for eyes.

"Wait, how is this going to help our situations at all?!" Usopp cried.

And within moments, we got our answer. "Oh my god, this crab is phenomenal!" I stated in shock.

"I can't believe it, it's running on water!" Usopp pointed out. And then he starts to sink, "Or… maybe not! We're sinking!"

We all managed to get off the crab and into the water, leaving the crab to skedaddle back to shore. I broke water first, taking the rear while Zoro took the lead with Chopper on his shoulders as the rest re-surfaced up from the river.

"We don't have time to complain! Let's all keep moving!" Zoro stated as we all starts swimming for the far-end.

"W-W-Wait! Isn't there at least a boat?!" Our sniper cried, "How far is the other side anyways?!"

"Around 50km." Vivi pointed out.

"You think I can swim that far?!"

"I can." I stated.

"Would you just shut up, Rein?!"

It was then right in front of us, from under the river's surface, out appears an enormous catfish the size of the Going Merry.

"It's a Sandora Rare Catfish!" Vivi cried, "It's extremely rare to see!"

"Save the explanations for later!" Usopp cried.

"And it loves to eat humans!" No longer than she said that, the fish opened its mouth and starts sucking us in.

"MENTION THAT FIRST!"

And then, within moments of its appearance, it is defeated as quickly. When the fish floats onto the river dead, we saw our saviors.

"KUO!"

"The Kung-Fu Dugongs!" Vivi cried.

Thanks to them, we manages to pass through the river within an hour. When we reached the shore, we say our farewells, my own disciple of the dugong making the Jojo poses before leaving with his species. I'm so proud of him! He would make an excellent Joestar one day!

"We've made pretty good time, but can we make it in time?" Zoro pointed out.

"It would be hard, even with Eyelashes here." Vivi stated out.

"He can only take two people at a time, right?" I stated, "That's not going to help our case here."

"Not only that, we have to deal with the BW agents from here on out!" Usopp cried, "Isn't there anyway for us to get there as a group?!"

"W-Wait! Look over there!" Nami pointed out into the distance. From what we could see, a small cloud can be seen coming towards us.

"W-What is it?! Did enemies track us down already?!" The sniper cried.

"No! Those are…!"

The cloud comes to a halt, the sandy smoke settled to reveal a large variety of large ducks with Carue at the lead, "Carue! And the super spot-billed duck squads!" Vivi cried.

"That's a lot of ducks!" I cried, "Where were you finding them? Aren't this place a desert country?"

"Enough of that! With them, we'll be able to make it in time!" The princess stated, "Everyone, grab one and head off!"

"You heard her!" Zoro stated, "Get on a duck and move!"

"PFT-HAHAHAHAAHA"

"And shut up, Rein!"

* * *

After couple of hours of riding, we finally made it to Alubarna. Midway, Nami got the idea of everyone putting on the same coloured cloaks to conceal our identity as we take off towards the capital. Right in front of us are the five figures I knew we would face.

I hold my breath as I held on to the duck I'm riding on, the one that the camel was originally going to ride in the manga, the ones with the horns. This is it! It's game time!

A small baseball rolled in front of us, a small ticking sound can be heard that alerted Zoro immediately.

"Get away!"

With his warning in time, we all manages to avoid an explosion from that ball and proceeds on with our next plan of action. Sanji and Chopper split off towards our right, my guess is the south gates getting the attention of the two heavy hitters of their group, Mr. 4 and Ms. Merry Christmas.

"Special Attack: Flame Star!" Usopp fried a flaming shot right at Mr. 1 which he blocked it relatively easily.

With that, Zoro and Sanji took off to our left, the west gate if I recall as he and Ms. Doublefinger gave chase. I eyed Bon Clay before smirking as I silently mushed the duck forward, "CHARGE!"

And like that, I ploughed right through him, sending him flying into the air spinning as we took off towards the south gates.

Running through the gates and down a few streets, the okama finally caught up to us. I slightly laughed as Usopp called out, "Hahahaha! You did good following us all the way in!" He laughed in a fake feminine voice.

"You guess right, I'm the real Vivi~!" I cooed in my fake Vivi's voice.

And seeing no one else around, we both pulled off our cloaks.

"TOO BAD! WRONG GUESS! BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME!"

We both laughed at him, our sniper pulling down his eyelid in mockery while I gave him the bird chuckling.

"Y-You two?!" He cried out at me, "You guys are those pirates from before!"

"Go! Rein!" Usopp cheered hiding behind me, "Give him your worst!"

"Yeah, yeah, give me cover fire, alright." I sighed as I draw out Raitou.

"Stop joooooking around!" The okama cried angrily, "Where is the princess?!"

"Who knows? Maybe she returned to the palace already?" I smirked.

"You little!" Bon Clay shoots off towards me, "Don't mock me!" He strikes a kick right at me which I blocked with my sword. But the force was too great as I was sent flying into the building behind me crashing through the wall.

"Ah! Rein- GAK!" I heard Usopp cried as I got back up. I got back up from the rubble to see the long nose on the floor semi-unconscious with bruises all over his face.

"Usopp!" I cried.

"I'll be taking this." Bon Clay smirked as he took our sniper's goggles, "If you guys are here, that leaves either the south gate or she hasn't enter the capital yet." Damn, he is sharp! He better got for-

"And by your reaction, she is still outside the capital~!"

"Wha-?!" Crap, did he read my expression?! He's not the third highest ranked officer for nothing, I guess… That means I have to stop him here!

"See ya later~!"

"Come back here!" I rushed towards him with sword poised to strike. I then felt a small prick on my thigh, I looked down to see a knife stabbed into it. I looked around, trying to find my assailant but I can't see any signs of them.

I turn my attention towards Bon Clay but he has already dashed down the streets, too far for me to catch up now. "Damn it…"

"Now, now, no need to rush off, young girl."

I hear a voice from behind me, I turned around to my shock as a man hold the bruised and unconscious Usopp up with a knife close to his neck, "Let's have some fun, first." He smirked. The man has dark brown hair with clear blue eyes, don in a black dress-shirt that has its sleeves rolled up to his elbows with a red tie and white pants tucked into a pair red high-cut boots.

"Let go of him!" I shouted at him.

"Oh? Is that anyway of asking someone to do something?" He chuckles as he moved his knife closer to the sniper's neck, "Why don't we leave it to you? If you do what I said, then I _may_ let him go."

This is bad! Real bad! I don't even know who he is! There are agents that haven't been accounted for in the manga, but I didn't think one of them is here! I need to buy some time, first. Seeing as the ducks aren't here, they must have left to get help. I'll have to stall him until someone get here, my guess is on Sanji, hopefully…

"Who are you?!"

"Hm? Me? I'm no one, really." He stated, "But I was given the codename of Mr. 6, so you can call me that for now."

Mr. 6… the one that is below that bomb guy, I bet…

"Why are you here? You're not even one of the officer agents!" I asked.

"Crocodile asked me to." He smirked.

Wait, he knows his real name?! It should only the officer agents that were known of his name due to this operation! Who IS he?!

"And guess by your reaction, you must be surprised by my knowledge of our boss's true identity." He smirked, "Well, it's a long story, but in the nutshell, I was his subordinate long before BW. But that's all I can say for now."

"Then you should have an idea of Crocodile's plans-"

"Now hold on, that's enough questions from you." He stated placing the blade dangerously close to Usopp's neck, "Now, you're going to do exactly as I say, got it?"

"…Fine…" I need to stall for time at least…

"Now, drop your weapons and kick it far."

I followed as he instructed, I sheathing my sword and then taking it out from my sash and tossing it aside, it landed near a wall left of me.

"Good, good. Now, you're going to take that jacket off of you."

He wants me to do what?!

"Go on! Or you want your friend to lose some blood?"

…Damn that guy…! I go along with what he said, taking off my jacket as slow as I can, dropping it onto the ground begrudgingly.

"Good… no hidden weapons…" He muttered, "Next, your boots."

I kneeled down to untie the laces, before kicking them off. My feet is feeling a little warm on the sand to my surprise, I was expecting it to be hot.

"No hidden weapons there… Now, your pants."

"WHAT?!"

"Go on now! Need I remind you the stakes you have here?!" He shouted as he held his knife to the sniper's neck, right up where the artery is, "Now, take them off, or else-!"

"POITRINE SHOT!"

I then witness Sanji flew by and nailing the man in the gut with a flying kick, sending him off of Usopp and sending him flying down the streets.

"Sanji!" I'm never so happy to see the pervert in my life!

"To threaten a lady like that, you shitty asshole…" He growled, before turning to me with a happy heart-filled expression, "Rein-chwan~! Do you like my dashing rescue~?! Have you fallen for me now~?"

"No, never ever." I stated as I quickly wore back my boots.

"But what happened here?" He asked, "Why is Usopp bruised up like that…?"

"Bon Clay." I tells me as I tightened the lace, "He took him down and escaped from me. He's probably going after Vivi."

"Vivi-chan?! That little…!" He growled.

"Uuh…" Usopp slowly regains consciousness, "Oh, Sanji. Thanks for coming."

"Enough of you! And hurry up to Chopper!" He tells him, "I've left him with that Mr. 4 pair and I doubt he can handle them alone!"

"Why me?! Why not Rein?!"

"You want me to send a lady into battle?!"

"It's way more useful than sending _me_!"

"You cheeky punks!"

I saw Mr. 6 getting up, several knives now in his hands, "That really hurt, you jackass! Let me return it you with interest!" He then tossed his knives right at Sanji. I manages to grab Raitou, unsheathed it and knocks them all out of the air with one swing.

"Then allow me to pay you back in interest as well!" I smirked.

"You little…!"

"Sanji! Go on ahead!" I tells him as I placed my sheath back around my waist, "Leave this one to me!"

"B-But, Rein-chan-!"

"You're the only one that can reach Vivi in time!" I shouted, "I'll hold him off at least, so move!"

I hear Sanji clicked his tongue, before his footsteps along with Usopp's echoed to me before fading in the distance. I held my sword with my two hands, ready to counter anything that he might pulls out.

"Not bad." Mr. 6 smiled as he spun a knife in his hand, "Never had anyone hits my knife out of the air like that. You're not an average chick, are you? But then again, you _are_ the Dragon Princess."

"Glad to be of service." I stated.

"I guess I'll just have to be a little more assertive now…" He smirked as he held his knife in an ice-pick grip, "Don't expect me to be to go easy on a lady."

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **There! Done! Finally finished here! It was a little touch and go, considering it all, but I'm somewhat okay with this.**

 **Either way, yes, Mr. 6. A somewhat original character. I have this idea that Crocodile is going to have some loyal crewmembers before BW started, so Mr. 6 was born, since he is the highest ranked among the frontier agents.**

 **Anyway, the latest chp of One Piece just came out yesterday the time I finished this. But damn! Brook and Chopper is all ready for a last stand while Nami is the MVP of this arc. Sending Big Mom's own ability against her like a boss!**

 **Also, Boku no Hero Academia just updated, and waiting for the next chapter quietly. Hopefully Tintin(Can't remember his actual name at the moment) can handle Plague Knight.**

…

…

 **Yeah, that was a terrible, I should have written that, but all well!**

 **Say, should I write a BNHA fic as well? There's this idea at the back of my head, but I'm not sure if I can pull double duty on this.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	19. Ch 19:I can see all!

**Chapter 19: I can see all!**

* * *

I panted slightly as I blocked another knife tossed at me. Rushing forward again, "Rising Claw!" I slashes right at Mr. 6, who simply dodges before spinning a knife at me and stabs at me. I barely dodges it before leaping back for some distance.

Damn it! It has been like what, several minutes since I started but I couldn't leave a single scratch on him!

"What's the matter? Getting tired?" Mr. 6 laughed.

"Shut up, you!" I growled.

I need some kind of opening, but with how bullshit he is by his seemly infinite amount of knives, it seems impossible to close in without getting a counter in return.

"You really should just cut your losses and give up." He smirked, juggling his knives about in the air, "From what I can see, you're the guerilla type of fighter. You hit fast and hard with pinpoint accuracy and with those crazy reflexes of yours, dodge any really threatening attack and then retreating when your enemy seems to get an upper hand. The worst type against me."

This guy sure liked to run his mouth about…

"I may not seem like it, but I was once an assassin for a kingdom in the North Blue." Mr. 6 added, "Until it is overrun by a coup from the Revolutionary Army, that is. Back then, I was known for my 100% clear rate of any mission. I always get my targets, no matter what."

"You sure like talking for an assassin." I pointed out as I watched him carefully. An opening, just give me one!

"Well, since my target now is you, I like to take my time." He stated, "After all, talking can be a distraction."

"A… distraction-GAK!"

I felt my shoulder blade being stabbed hard, I grunted in pain as I tried to keep my stance proper. I barely manages to block another thrown weapon from him, I stumbling backwards as I move pull the weapon out of my shoulder. Only to find none.

"The hell? Where's the knife?" I wonders.

"Who knows?" Mr. 6 stated as he tossed several move knives at me, I blocked them all before running back and into an alleyway.

I hid behind a barrel as I felt my wounds a little. I know I was stabbed. I felt the blade penetrate my skin and it being stuck there. How does a knife just vanished without a trace?

I then witness a knife flew towards me, I quickly moved to dodge it, only for it to hit the barrel behind me. The knife was rather… unique. It's all transparent and almost invisible if weren't for the distortions in the air around it.

What kind of knife is that?! And why did I came from in front of me?! That guy should still be behind me!

"Hiding won't do you any good, missy~!"

The wall beside suddenly warped as I ducked as several knives popped out of it and nearly turns me into a human pincushion. The hell?! Did those knives came out of the wall?! I turned back to the wall, notices the holes in the wall where the knives originated from.

"Found you!" The ground warped like the wall as more knives shoots out from it as I dodged them barely, a few nicked my thigh.

I tumbled out of the alleyway back onto the street, where Mr. 6 is waiting for me.

"Surprised?" He smirked at me.

"You…! What was that all about?!" I cried, "Are you a Devil Fruit user?!"

"Bingo! Give the girl a prize!" He stated clapping slowly, "It is indeed as you said, I have eaten a Devil Fruit." He picked up a pebble, as I watched it warped into a small knife in his hand, "I've eaten the Knife-Knife Fruit, I'm a Knife-Human. I have the ability to create and manipulate knifes from anything, as long it is in my view."

That would explain the bullshit infinite amount of knives at his disposal. He was creating knives to attack me with from the start.

"Oh, and when I mean anything. I mean _anything_."

I watched in horror as small knives starts to form in the air of his palm, which he then positions in front of him in a curved row, their transparent blades pointing straight at me. "Vzduch Nuz*." With a snap of his fingers, the knives all shoots at me like a machine gun firing right at me.

I quickly slashes at them, knocking down them down as much as I can. In the end, it wasn't enough as several cuts on my arms, legs, some even embedded themselves into them as well. I remain standing there breathing shakily as I remained in my stance. The knives all sticking out of me like I'm some kind of human porcupine.

God, everything hurts! I'm sure I'm losing more blood than it is healthy! This is bad, really bad…

"Is that all? I thought you are tougher." He chuckles, "But I'm surprised you are still standing, most people are either dead or on the floor bleeding from this attack."

"…" I could barely talk, I'm just trying to not fall over. Compared to my previous fights, this is the hardest one yet… And this guy is ranked LOWER than Mr. 5!

"Not much to talk about now?" He stated before flexing his hand, a knife slowly made its way out of his skin, "Guess I'll end it here."

I tried to think of anything I can do to win this. ANYTHING! I can still move, but the knives are making it hard to. I doubt I can make it to him and dodge his impossible knife-throws at the same time with the blade sticking out of me.

He smirked as he readied his knife to stab as he walked up towards me.

God damn it! Not like this! I'm not ending like this-BEHIND!

My body moved as I dodged a few air knives that has appeared behind me and miss me completely. The hell was that-BACK FRONT!

I raised my sword up as Mr. 6 tries to stab me with his knives, my blade pushing against the dagger's guard. What was that all about?! I then witness a mirage of sorts, an image of him forming another knife in his other hand and stabs at me.

I pushed him back before kicking him back, just as he grab a hold of his other knife to his and my surprise as he fell onto the floor on his back.

What was that? It was like I say the future for a moment. Now that I notice, everything just got a little noisier… The voices of all sorts bouncing off in the air, as I suddenly was aware of lot of things.

The army fighting just few blocks from here… Vivi at the palace… Zoro fighting against Mr. 1… Nami running from Ms. Doublefinger… Sanji just finishing Bon Clay with a kick… Chopper patching up Usopp with Mr. 4 and Ms. Merry Christmas unconscious… even Crocodile's presence in the palace sneaking up to Vivi.

The hell is this? It's like I've gain some sort of clairvoyance of… sorts… wait a minute… the impossible awareness… the voices… It can't be…

Is this… Observation Haki?!

I got Observation Haki this early in the story?!

"The hell was…?" He wonders before getting up and throwing more knives at me. It was really bizarre, this power… the knives are thrown at me with the same speed as always, but now… I can see the path it is going to take, and I simply dodges them long before they reach me.

"What?!" He throws a few more, I dodges them really easily as I took to a run. "H-How are you dodging them?!"

"Trade secret!" I shouted as I rushed at him, my sword held in a reverse grip in my left hand. Time to test out a new move!

"Vzduch Nuz Chaos!"

He fires several more knives at almost random patterns. But I can see it; the paths they would take, and the safe path for me to take without getting injured. I rushed forward through the mess of knives, before coming close to him.

"W-Wha-?!"

"Dragon-Sword Style, Secret Art:" I held tightly on my sword as I spun my body around, "Eruption Dragon!" I swings my blade up while mock-drawing it, slashing up right up the middle of the man's torso, "Flowing Stream!" I watch him stumble back groaning before falling on the ground unconscious.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding as I sheathed my sword. I nearly stumbled over in pain when the adrenaline wears off.

"God, this hurts like a bitch…" I felt the wounds, the air knives all dissipates already. I looked over to where I left my jacket, it completely in rags now. I rubbed up my wounds, the lack of covering is kind of unnerving for me as I'm just wearing somewhat of a bikini top from my dancer's outfit.

So… I got Observation Haki now… This is going to be either really useful or a big pain in the ass to control. Right now, I can see almost everything at every second in real time.

Ah! Everyone seems to be gathering now. I better head off there too.

* * *

As I ran down the streets, a certain voice popped into my head. It was really familiar voice, one that brings upon a storm of troubles as he rushes into his latest adventures. "L-Luffy…!" I nearly cried in relief as I made it to the Town Square.

"Everyone!" I called out to them.

"Rein!" Nami cheered.

"Oh, Rein-chan! You're okay!" Sanji cheered.

"Damn, what happened to you?" Zoro asked, "Did knives rain onto you or something?"

"…That's actually pretty accurate." I nodded grimly.

"What kind of enemy did you face…?" The swordsman looked at me worriedly.

"Sorry, guys…" Luffy tells us with his arms stretched out towards the palace's walls, "I lost to him once. But I won't lose again! So take care of the rest in the meanwhile!"

"Hurry up and beat his ass already…" Zoro muttered.

"If you can't beat him, who can?!" Usopp cried.

"It's time, to end everything!"

"You bet!" We all echoed together as we watch our captain fling himself into the palace.

"Okay, what do we do now?" Usopp asked.

"First we have to find a bomb!" Vivi cried, "Crocodile has rigged a bomb to fire within ten minutes from now! It has a radius of 5km that could envelope the whole of the town square!"

"WHAT?!" We all cried at her, before recalling the same scene once before. Oh right, wasn't the bomb at…

"Find the one shooting the bomb?!" The sniper cried, "How do we do that?! There's not even time to think! The bomb's going off in about ten minutes time! If the blast radius is 5km, the shooter must be at least 2.5km away!"

"No, it wouldn't." The princess explained, "Or at least, I don't think so. The shooter is most likely very close to the palace square."

"Why?! He'd would be caught in the blast-Ah!"

"…That's just the kind of person Crocodile is…" Nami stated.

"You said it-" I then sensed…! "Vivi, duck!" I drew out Raitou and stabs forward, my blade slip just beside Vivi's head and into the shoulder blade of an incoming BW Billion agent.

"Ah! It's the Billions!" She cried.

"Found ya, princess!" One of them laughed as they all surrounds us, "I wonder how high I'll be promoted once I killed you!"

"Damn the lot of them…" Sanji muttered as he ready to kick.

"Clock Tower!" I shouted as I pull my sword out of the unconscious agent, "The bomb should be in there!"

"Huh? Why would you-OH! Is it…!" Usopp realized.

"Yeah, and I sense two people inside there!" I added.

"Sense…?" Nami asked, "What do you mean by…?"

"I'll explain after this clusterfuck is done with!" I readied my sword.

"Okay, so we need to get to the tower before ten minutes so…" Zoro stated as he drew his sword.

"Ten minutes minus… how many…?" Sanji pointed out, "We don't have time to waste so…"

"Two Seconds."

With the agreed time the two of them rushed at the gang of bounty hunters as the rest of us rushed off, "We'll go on ahead!" Nami tells them.

"Vivi! Lead the way!" Usopp cried.

"Right! Please follow me!"

* * *

"Ussop Noise!"

I cringed badly as our sniper scratches on a chalkboard he pulls out from his pouch. But it has the desired effect as most of the agents there all pretty much all covered their ears as they paddled about on the ground like some dying fish.

"Now!"

"Right!"

The three of us took to a run as we rushed towards the tower. This isn't the first time we encountered the Billions as we ran about through the palace's square. We pretty much were separated due to the sandstorm Crocodile no doubt conjured up.

But thanks to Vivi being close and Usopp pretty much huddled up with me, we manages to reach the Clock Tower within just a few minutes.

"Only three minutes left…" Vivi panted tiredly, "Come! I'll show you the way in!"

"Ah! Rein-chan! Vivi-chan!" Sanji called as he rushed towards us.

"Prefect timing!" I stated, "Sanji! I need you and Usopp to stop anyone from coming after us!"

"Understood!" He stated happily, "I'll guard this place with my life!"

"Why am I included?!" Usopp cried.

"Vivi, lead the way!" I shouted as we ran into the tower.

After following her through a secret door, we made our way up as fast as we could. I then saw mirages again and swings my sword out, cutting a thin wire that causes several arrows to drop from above just in front of us.

Of course, this place is fucking booby trapped! Thank god for my Observation Haki, or we'll be dead!

"They rigged the place!" Vivi cried.

"Yeah, but we are in a hurry, so…" I rushed forward, swinging my sword around whenever I saw a mirage. I manages to trip most of the traps and avoided those that would block our way.

Within roughly a minute of running and jumping we finally reached the top, where Mr. 7 and Ms. Mother's Day are opening the clock preparing to fire the cannon. Damn! Did we take too long?!

"I'll handle the frog lady!" I called out as I rushed towards her.

"Hm?"

"Charging Horns!" I rushed at them and knocks the female sniper out, just as Vivi take down her partner with her Peacock Slasher.

We both sighed in relief before she looked into the cannon in horror, "The bomb… it's timed?!"

"Yeah, but we still have some chance!" I shouted as I pushed the rest of the clock out. We might be lucky with our timing in this. Alabasta might still be saved! "Call Pell! Quickly!"

"W-What are you planning-" And then she realized my plans, "You're asking Pell to carry the bomb?!"

"That's the fastest way!" I shouted. I should have asked Usopp to come up here with us! We could use his expertise right now!

"B-But…!"

"The bomb is a few seconds off from the assigned time!" I added in, "He might have some time to get away!"

"E-Even so-!"

"I understand."

I paused, as I saw Pell appeared on the edge of the clock. His face smiling but blood is dripping on his robes.

"P-Pell…! I-If you do this…!" Vivi stutters out.

"Princess Vivi." He smiled at her, "It's my greatest honor to serve the Nefertari household. So please, allow me to serve you one last time."

In a blink of an eye, he turns into a full falcon and starts carrying the bomb out of the cannon. With all his strength, he starts flapping his wings as he took off in the skies. "No! Pell, stop! Please!" Vivi begged.

I closed my eyes and prayed. Please! Let the timing be off just enough!

"Quite a reckless lady you are."

I opened my eyes in shock as I saw a man standing on the edge of the clock, the cashier from Rainbase?! He smirked as he took off his turban, revealing some white transparent glittering hair, "You may not be related to him, but I can definitely see some of Sen in you."

"W-Who…?"

"Allow me this favor." He smirked, "From an old man to the new generation." He bended down, before leaping up into the air breaking the sound barrier in an instant. I stared in shock, before running to the edge to see what's happening.

That man rockets passed Pell, grabbing the bomb along way. Once he is just a spot in the sky, the world lit up. The bomb exploded with him… What the hell is that guy thinking?!

A few seconds passed, the army below has stopped fighting for a moment. But, within another second, they all picked up arms and charged at each other once more.

"No…!" Vivi muttered in horror, "Nononono! PLEASE STOP! STOP FIGHTING! PLEASE!"

I watch her screamed her heart out, the army down there still fighting not hearing her at all. I didn't pay much attention to their voices from focusing on our task ahead, but know I hear them clear as day.

There's so much anger, so much hatred that it envelops them in a haze. And so many voices just started disappearing one after another. Stop! Please… no more!

"STOP!" I screamed together with Vivi as I felt tears flowing down my face, "Stop this! You guys have to stop!"

"Rein…"

And then, the ground shake as someone was tossed out of the ground. With a little sensing, I know who that is. Crocodile is defeated! Luffy has won!

But even so, the armies below carried on fighting non-stop. More voices start to disappear one after another.

"There's no more enemies left now…" Vivi mumbled, "So please… don't shed anymore needless blood…"

"PLEASE! JUST STOP FIGHTING!"

*Drip*

I felt a drop of water on my head, before looking up to see the rain starting to pour down from the heavens.

"PLEASE STOP FIGHTING!"

Vivi screamed one more time, and this time, everyone listened. The fighting stopped as both armies looked up towards us, mostly at Vivi, "The rain falling now… will fall again as in times past." She voiced out to them, "Now that the nightmare is finally over…"

"…Hold it!" One of the rebels shouted, "Nightmares don't just end because of you or anybody declared it to be over!"

"We saw what the king did at Nanohana with our own eyes!" Another added on.

"That's right! Our leader Kouza was shot too!"

"It's the same with ever act of violence the royalists have carried out up to this point!"

"Do you really think any of our fallen comrades can just accept this conclusion?!"

"Throw down your arms, Royalists!"

"C-Commander Chaka!" One of the royal army cried, I sensed some movement from the palace, but his aura is pretty weak but not life-threatening, I think…

"Chaka…" Vivi muttered.

"You d-AHEM! Maa~ Maa~ maa~! You too, Rebels!"

I sensed another presence from the other end, near the rebel army. This one is much more vital than the other one.

"C-Captain Igaram!"

"Igaram?!" The princess cried.

I panted in relief as I leaned onto the cannon for support. It's all over. The war is over. The plot would proceeds as it always have till its conclusion… "Let's head down to the others." I panted out.

"Can you still walk?" Vivi asked me worriedly.

"Yeah." I nodded as I ran down the stairs with her.

* * *

Once we reached down and exited the Clock Tower, we couldn't find our crew anywhere. I concentrated, and sensed them just a few blocks down. "Vivi, this way." I stated as I took off running.

After several minutes of running, we finally found them, with Luffy on King Cobra's back.

"Everyone!" Vivi cried, "And… Papa?!"

"P-Papa?!" Sanji cried staring at the king in surprise, "Y-You're Vivi's father?!"

"You're the king?" Zoro asked.

Cobra slowly put our captain down as he turns to us and starts explaining everything, "I had already resigned myself to death, but he saved my life. Even after fighting Crocodile with that body, he carried two people back up to the surface. His strength is incredible…"

"Being stupidly strong is his own good point, after all." I stated chuckling.

"Then that poison should no longer be a problem right?" Usopp pointed out.

"Yes, it should be neutralized by now." The king nodded, "But he still needs treatment for his other wounds. The same to all of you."

"…aaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

I looked up at the sudden noise as did everyone when a figure dropped down on the ground in front of us. I stared in shock as the man from before stumbled out of the crater un-injured except for a few bruises from crashing.

"Owowow… It's been a while since I handle a bomb blast up close…" He grumbled as he cracked his neck, "It actually wound me this time… my age sure is showing…"

"I-Ignis?! What are you doing here?!" Cobra cried.

"Wait, you know him?!" I cried.

"He's a wandered in our country." He explained, "But he has been somewhat of a historian for the Nefertari Household since its founding."

"He's an old man?!" Usopp cried, "He seems the same age as Merry!"

"I've heard of him!" Vivi stated, "But I thought it was just some fairy tail…"

Wait, anciently old… impossibly superhuman attributes… and that hair… it's like gemstones… It can't be…

"Wait, are you… a Dragon…?" I asked.

"Dragon?!" Everyone cried at me.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Nami cried, "Dragons are just myths and legends in storybooks!"

"Eh?! But Rein said she was friends with one!" Chopper cried.

"She's probably pulling your leg." Usopp stated.

"Nope, she's right." That man, Ignis, laughed, "I'm a Dragon. An extremely old one at that!"

"Come on, now, don't be pulling our legs too." The sniper laughed.

"Want me to prove it?" He smirked, as a long white reptilian tail shoots out from under his robes.

"…Devil Fruit?"

"Nope! This is all natural!"

"…"

"Let's just leave the surprise till later…" Zoro sighed, "At any rate, you should head back to the square Vivi."

"Huh?"

"T-That's right." Usopp nodded, "The rebellion was finally stopped, but it's going to feel anticlimactic without the king or their princess."

"Then all of you should-!"

"Vivi. You understand, don't you?" Sanji tells her lighting a new cigarette, "We're pirates. We've got no intentions getting involved in another country's affairs."

"We're going to head to the palace on our own." Nami tells her, "We're all dead tired."

"Don't worry." I added on with a thumbs-up, "We'll be fine."

Vivi looked at us for a moment, before giving us an understanding nod before leaving with Cobra. I let out a sigh of relief before collapsing on the ground with the rest of us. It took all I have just to remain standing. Soon, exhaustion took over as I drifted into the darkness.

* * *

Ignis stared at the unconscious pirates in the alleyway. "Hm. The will of D. lives on…huh…?" He smirked.

"Sergeant Major! The Straw Hats are down this alley!"

He sighed as he turned to the marines crowding at the mouth of this alleyway. He pointed his hand forward, index finger on his thumb. With a single flick, a burst of wind blasts out from him, sending them all flying into the air and crashing into the building behind them.

"Now listen well!" He shouted as he walked up to them, before sitting down on the mouth of the alleyway, "If any of you white morons tried to even come pass me, or even take another route, I'll personally behead you right where you stand!"

"W-Who…?"

"…Everyone! You're not to lay a hand on the Straw Hats!" Someone shouted as a captain walked up to him, slamming her spear on the ground hard.

"C-Captain Suiren?!"

"B-But they are pirates! And they are sitting ducks down there!"

The Marines voices out their complaints before she slams her spear on the ground once more, "Listen, you ingrates!" She screamed, "This country has been in a civil war for three whole years, but does the World Government does anything to help?!"

"C-Captain…?"

"And now, this small bunch of newbie pirates is able to bring down a shadow organization and stop the coup and save this country from self-destruction." She added on, "They are this countries heroes, whether the government agreed with that or not is irrelevant!"

"So help me, if any of you tried to do something as stupid as arresting anyone of them right now, I'll personally break court martial myself!"

The marines were all stunned silent, Tashigi was staring at the co-captain in surprise. She always thought of the Ocean Amazon as a ruthless but justice-filled marine like Smoker, and yet she is willing to break protocol to protect some pirates…?

"What's your name, kid?" Ignis asked Suiren.

"Suiren." She tells him, "Captain from the Marine HQ."

"Suiren, huh… got to remember that name…" He smirked. This era is changing slightly. He can feel it.

Sure would be great to see it all to the end.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 ***Air Knives**

 **And done! The final battle in Alabasta is done! So yes, the fight with Mr. 6. I wanted to create someone that would be a challenge to Rein in a one-on-one situation. Joudan is the starting point, while this guy is the first checkpoint in her journey.**

 **And the Knife-Knife Fruit is an original DF in this series, at least, I think it is since I haven't seen such fruit in the main story as of now.**

 **So yeah, much of new favourites and follows! Thanks for liking this story! It really helps to see so many people liking this one so much.**

 **Finally, Ignis. Yes, another Dragon in the mix! And this one is rather special… you'll find out in the next chapter.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	20. Ch 20:An interesting Farewell

**Chapter 20: An interesting Farewell, and a new member!**

* * *

When morning arise one day, the rain has stopped, having rained for the three whole days non-stop. Near the port of Tamarisque in the east, couple of Marine ships are docked with the rain maker ship that Crocodile has used to steal the rain.

"Captain Smoker! Ms. Hina! Sergeant Major Tashigi and Captain Suiren have arrived!"

With that announcement, both high ranking officer took notice as the remaining forces of their own squads all returned with little bruised but mostly uninjured. The two leading them are worst to wear, the lower ranked of the two a little more brooding.

"It's been a while, Tashigi." Hina greeted her.

"Captain Hina…" She solemnly greeted, "Hello to you too. Sorry, but I'm rather tired… so please excuse me…" She then walked away silently up to the boat where her boss is waiting. "Sergeant Major Tashigi reporting back, Captain Smoker."

"Welcome back." Smoker greeted back, "I heard about what happened with the Straw Hats."

"Don't blame her, Smoker." Suiren tells him as she walked up to her, "Tashigi is just following my orders. I was the one that let them escape."

"That's not true…" The glasses-wearing marine sighed tiredly, "I aided them too. I know it's a disgrace to me as a marine but… I'm so sorry…"

"Tashigi…"

"Why are you apologizing?" Smoker asked, "Did your actions not stem from your sense of justice?"

"No, they do not." She stated grimly, "It was because it was the ONLY thing I can do… Even though I know where the enemy is… I was ONLY capable of conveying that location… Even though I knew where the bombing would be… I was ONLY able of providing them SUPPORT… I had no justice which I could choose myself…"

"…People who you've thought to be on your level until recently have climbed up to higher highs, spreading their infamy." Her captain explained, "They know that you can't survive in this ocean without constantly struggling to climb higher."

"…"

"Will you advance stronger, or die? Who was it that decided on her own to come to this ocean?"

"…Please excuse me, Captain… I like to take a rest for a while…" She tells him as she climbed back onto the boat passing him.

But he is not blind, "You idiot…"

"If you're frustrated enough to cry, then try getting stronger!"

Within her sobs, she manages to answer back, "YES, SIR!" Before heading into her quarters.

Suiren looked on tiredly, "…Where were we when this happened…?"

"Huh?" Hina looked at the new-appointed Captain.

"Where were we when this civil war revolves out of control?" She asked, gripping her spear tightly, "When I join the marines, it was so I could protect people, to save them from the terrors that the pirates bring. But now…"

"I don't even know what to think anymore…"

* * *

I was one of the last few one to wake up after our battle. Right after I awaken, Chopper gave me a lecture of worsening wounds and cleaning up my wounds. After that I went back to our daily task of mundane things.

Today, I decided to look into the books in the library, hoping to maybe learn something about this country.

If I recall correctly, the one of the chapters in the Dressrosa Arc has mentioned that the Nefetari Household was one of the twenty kingdoms that rise up to be a World Noble, but they decided not to come to Mariejois for an unknown reason.

Not only that, they are tasked with protecting a poneglyph that writes the location and existence of Pluton of all things.

This mystery has been bugging me for a while now, but I never really dig deep into this. Now that I'm here, might as well check up on their history to see what I can find.

After a few detours here and there, I made it into the library where I ran to the history section almost immediately.

"Let's see… let's start with the oldest records ever…" I muttered as I check the books one after another.

The creation of Alubarna… the history of the country's military… the treaty of… huh? The words after that are crossed out… And it looks like most of the pages were ripped out too.

"Looking for something?"

I nearly jumped in fright when an aura just appeared behind me without warning. The Observation Haki I've obtained is a little unstable at the moment. I can't really turn it off just yet, so I've been receiving emotions and voices from all over the palace.

And when it was really awkward at times, like that one time where I sensed Igaram making love with his wife and they just keep going! It was arousing and awkward all at once.

I turned around to see Ignis standing there with a smile.

"Ignis?"

"I've heard you are awake, so I came to say hi."

"O-Oh…" I nodded, "…I've never introduced myself, have I…? I'm-"

"Rein, right?" He smirked, "You're Sen's apprentice, I presume."

"Eh? You know Sen?" I asked.

"I'm a Dragon, after all." He stated, "And all of the Dragons knows at least him."

"Huh? Why?"

"…So he never said anything, huh…"

"Hm?"

"Oh, nevermind that!" He laughed, "Nothing you need to worry about now!"

"O-Oh…" I'm just confused. Is Sen that big of a deal in the Dragon's society?

"Anyway, what are you looking for?" He asked me.

"Oh, I'm looking for any history books, the older the better." I stated, "I wanted to find out something about Alabasta, so…"

"…You want to know their connections to the Blank Century?"

I froze when he spoke out those words. Blank Century…? That's right! If Nefetari family was one of the kingdoms back then, then they must have connections to that time period! But I guess Nico Robin has thought of that as well, and probably turn up nothing…

"…Not really…" I stated, "…Does Sen told you about…"

"About what?"

"Oh, nothing! Just some embarrassing stuff!" I nervously laughed. Okay, so he doesn't know about me… I would need to choose my words carefully here…

"…If you want to find out about that, I suggest you stop looking here." He tells me, "The royal library has a large collection of books, but most of the more damning pages are removed from this place."

"Oh, so they do have connections to the Blank History." I pointed out.

"In a sense, yes." He nodded, "But it has been several centuries since then. Most of the tomes have probably rotted away by now."

That's a shame… Oh well, at least I know a lot more than I originally thought.

"But I do have a book containing a complete history of this kingdom." He added on with a smirk, "Every single event, from its founding till present day."

"You do?!" I cried in surprise, "Do you have it with you, now?!"

"Nope, but I can get it for you!"

"That'll be great-." Then I paused. Would it be really worth it to get the answers so quickly…? I mean… Rayleigh has said so himself. They were in too much of a rush when they found out the truth. But this might be the only chance I have!

"…On second thought, you can keep it."

"Huh? You sure?" Ignis asked confused, "Don't you wish to find out what the Blank History is all about?"

"It's alright." I nodded, "We'll find out about it eventually as we sail along." And bring aboard Nico Robin…

"…I see." He smirked, "Okay then, but I will give you something."

"Huh? What is it?"

"Give me a second here…" He looked across the bookshelves, before removing several books to reveal a thin book hidden inside, "Ah! Here we go!"

"What is that?" I asked as he retrieved the book.

"An encyclopedia, one of the Grand Line as well as the Devil Fruits that are known."

Wait, what?! That's really useful! And it was hidden in there?!

"Are you sure I can have this?" I asked worriedly, "I mean, this kind of knowledge is…"

"This isn't the only copy." He stated, "But it's an updated one as of now. The countless islands on this ocean are vast and diverse. It would be wise to have some prior knowledge beforehand, right?"

"I… don't know what to say…" I muttered as I received the book from him, "Thank you! This would be really useful for our voyage up ahead!"

"It's the least I can do." He grins, "You and your friends have saved this country. My country. At the very least, let this old man wish you well on your voyage."

"T-Thanks again!" I stated before running down the corridors.

Man, wait till the guys hear about this!

* * *

After a few detours, I met up with Zoro along the way and together made it to the bed chambers where we were resting.

"Oh, you're awake, Luffy." Zoro greeted our now-awake captain.

"Oh hey, Zoro, Rein! Long time no see!" Luffy greeted, before pausing in confusion, "Long time no see…?"

"AH! You went out training again, didn't you?!" Chopper cried as he starts to lecture on the swordsman.

"Long time no see…?" Our captain still haven't really get the situation.

"Yeah, I guess it has been a while." Our sniper tells our captain.

"Oh yeah, guys! I have some awesome news!" I cried out holding up the encyclopedia in my hands, "I met up with Ignis just now, and I've got a book with information on the Grand Line! Every island and species of animals are written in this book! Not only that, it also listed all the Devil Fruits in full here as well!"

"EH?! That's an amazing book!" Nami stated in surprise, "Then, we'll be able to plan our route from now on?! We can pick the safest one?!"

"Long time… no see…?"

"Okay, is anyone going to tell him about…?" I asked.

"Luffy, you has been unconscious for three days." Vivi tells him.

"T-Three days?!" Luffy cried, "I was asleep for three whole days?!"

"Yeah, you missed out on a lot of things." Usopp tells him.

Luffy's face just froze for a moment, as I can literally hear his brain's gears turning before finally an answer is made, "I missed 15 meals!"

"Why are you so fast in calculating only those kinds of things?" Nami asked sweat-dropping.

"And he calculated 5 meals a day…" Usopp added in.

"Hahaha, don't worry." Vivi assures him, "I've told the cooks to prepare food for you to eat anytime you want."

Then the doors swung opened and in comes Terracotta. I've met with her one day when I was searching about the castle grounds. I nearly freaked out at first but after talking for a bit, we became quite fast friends.

"Is the captain awake? Can you not wait a few minutes more for dinner?" She asked as another servant rolls in a tray filled with all kinds of fruits, "After all, food tastes better when you're eating with others than alone."

"W-Wha?!" Zoro flinched back in shock.

"It's the curly old man!" Luffy cried, "You're still alive?!"

"Oh, this is Terracotta, his wife." I stated, "She's the head of the servants and the head cook, right?"

"That's right!" She smiled at me, "I like to thank all of you for helping out my husband and princess Vivi."

"There's a limit on how much a couple can look alike…" The swordsman pointed out.

"I hear you eat a lot, so why don't you have some fruit to tide you over?"

"Sure."

And then the fruits just… disappeared. The fuck?! I've had my Haki on the whole time but I couldn't get this defiance of physics at all! It was all a blur then it was gone!

"What are you, a magician?!" Zoro and Sanji cried.

"Hey, lady! I'm gonna eat three days' worth of food!"

"Fine by me!"

"But Terracotta, are you sure you can handle it?" I asked worriedly, "I mean, our captain has a really big appetite! His stomach is a literal black hole!"

"Not a problem!" She assures me flexing her arms, "I have 30 years' worth of experience under my belt! I'm not going to lose to a young man appetite! And it would be good training for me!"

"…Okay, if you say so…"

* * *

Dinner was… as usual with us. By which I mean it is noisy and loud.

The entire dining hall is echoing all our shouts and screams and complains as we all devoured into our meals with haste. Especially with Luffy at the table with us.

"Quick! Eat as fast as you can before the food disappear!" Zoro cried as he tries to eat, but his piece of meat was stolen by our captain.

"Ah!" Usopp cried as his own share was stolen as well, "Hey, Luffy! You took that from my plate!"

"Nope!" I cried as I stabbed where Luffy's hand was going to with my fork, "No today!" He tried a few more times and I foiled him every time. I'll say it again, Observation Haki is a pain in the ass, but it is so worth it!

Until he slipped past and grabbed my share as well.

"GOD DAMN IT!"

"Hey, don't eat so fast!" Sanji tells Chopper who is literally swallowing the noodles like a drink.

"Don't worry, there's still plenty left…" Vivi assures him.

"Just you wait, Luffy…" Usopp chuckles as he prepared his tabasco laced meat. Luffy then stole that, and breathes out a pillar of flame as a result.

I laughed my head off as I watches our crew just devours into the palace food supplies. Sanji is asking about the food, Luffy trying to have a conversation with Cobra with his mouth full, yup, just an average day as a Straw Hat pirate!

"Best. Crew. EVER!"

* * *

After dinner, we were all treated to the baths. I was hesitant, but join in with our lady members anyway.

I laid in the bathwater happily as the bath water warmed me up nicely.

"This feels so nice~!" I sighed happily.

"You said it, Rein~!" Nami sighed, "I wonder if there's a ship with a bath this big as this place?"

"I'm sure there is." Vivi tells us as she washed Nami's back, "The sea is a vast place, after all. We met giants, dinosaurs, and even cherry blossoms in a snow country. There are bound to be many more things we can't even imagine about!"

"…" I smiled at her as I watch Vivi's relaxed expression. She is really pretty when she is all relax now… Thank god we manages to save this country. I wouldn't want to know what would happen if we didn't…

Then certain perverse intent is made clear, even without my Haki, as I glared at the wall where all of the male members are peeking in from.

"W-What are you guys doing?!" Vivi cried as she covered herself.

"Oh those idiots…" Nami sighed.

"You said it." I stated angrily.

"It's 10 000 beri per person, okay?"

"Huh?"

"Happiness Punch~!"

And our navigator flashes for them, causing their noses to bleed as they tumbled back into the other side of the baths.

"N-Nami!" Vivi cried.

"Have some dignity, woman!" I cried.

"Oh, then would you like a look?" She asked me showing me her nude form in full posing as sensually as possible, "You're into girls too, right?"

"Eh?! I-I…" I blushed as I looked away. God damn it, Oda! Why do you have to draw your female characters so sexy!

"Or… are you into royal types~?" She then pulls Vivi's towel off to show her naked form too.

"N-Nami!" She cried covering herself.

"Oh god…" I muttered as I stared at her. Damn, she has such smooth looking skin, and her figure isn't that bad… she definitely has that royal figure to her…

"I think she like it." Our navigator smirked.

"S-Stop it, already!" I cried as I tried not to think about the tingling between my legs.

"…Say… have your breasts gotten bigger?"

"Huh?!" I covered my chest in a panic.

"But they are really big, aren't they…" Vivi stated in awe.

"S-Stop looking!"

"…You know what, I want some payback!"

I couldn't react as Vivi suddenly pounced on me and starts groping me. She starts twisting my breasts around while flicking my nipples slightly to my agony.

In the end, after my violation, we all sat around in the bath just soaking in the warm water.

"…You're hesitating, aren't you?" Nami stated out.

"Huh?"

"We're thinking of leaving, if possible by tonight." She tells the princess.

"What?! Really?!" Vivi cried.

"Yeah, it would be for the best." I stated, "I mean, after that commotion we caused, the marines are definitely waiting to ambush us by the port."

"That, and with Luffy awake, we have no real reason left to stay here." She added on.

"B-But…"

"Vivi." I stated with a smile, "Whatever decision you make after this, we will respect it all the way."

"Rein…"

* * *

"Tonight?!" Usopp cried as me and Nami tells the rest about the plan when we returned to the sleeping quarters.

"Yes." Nami nodded.

"So we're leaving, are we…?" Chopper asked.

"Yeah, I think it would be a good idea." Zoro nodded, "There's no reason for us to stay in this country any longer, after all."

"I agree." Sanji nodded, "And I'm worried about the marine's actions."

"Luffy, it's up to you for the final decision." Our sniper tells him.

"Alright!" Luffy nodded, "We'll go after having another round of Alabastan cooking!"

"We have to leave now, you idiot!" I shouted as I slammed him in the head.

"Excuse me!" The doors opened as one of the soldiers entered carrying a Den Den Mushi, "You guys got a call."

"A call? From who?" Nami asked.

"A guy named Bon-chan."

"Bon-chan? Who's that?" Sanji asked.

"We don't know anyone by that name." Usopp stated.

"He insists that he's your friend, though…"

"Well, why don't we try answering?" Luffy suggested.

"It could be a trap." Zoro stated.

"Let's just see how this goes." I tells him. Yup, if I'm right, the one calling should be…

The soldier left the snail on our beds before leaving, Sanji hesitantly picked up the receiver where an obnoxious sounding voice answered, _"Hello? Hello?! GAHAHAHA! It is moi! It. Is. Moi~!"_

" _Ka-cha."_

Sanji hangs up immediately. We all sat there in silence as we immediately recognized that voice.

"…"

"…"

" _PURURURURURU!"_

"What is it?! Just shut up!" He shouted angrily.

Luffy immediately walked up to the snail and picked up the receiver, "You're the okama, right?! What do you want from us?!"

" _Oh! If it isn't Straw Hat-chan?! Are you a strong one?! Color me surprise! Oh yeah, and don't go calling me Mr. 2! I'll be in trouble if the marines are tapping into this call!"_

"You said it yourself just now…" Chopper pointed out.

"Just state your business." Zoro growled.

" _Oh, right, right. You see, I've taken possession of your ship!"_

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" We all shouted at him, except for me, I just groaned a little at how annoying that guy can be.

"Stop screwing around with us! Where the hell are you now?!" Usopp shouted.

" _I'm on your ship riiiiiiiiiiight now!"_

"Of all the people…" Sanji growled.

" _Oh nooooo! No, no, noooooo! Aren't we friends~!"_

* * *

"He's along the upper reaches of the Sandora river." Luffy explained as he hanged up the snail.

"Can we even trust him?" Sanji wonders.

"Well, we were friends with him once before…"

"Knowing you, I'm more worried you'll get friendly with him again…" Zoro pointed out.

"But we have no other choice." Chopper stated.

"Yeah, he has our ship, after all." I pointed out.

"Well, if it is a trap, we'll just have to beat his ass again." Sanji stated.

"Then it's settled." Zoro nodded, "We better start getting ready."

We gathered all our belongings and get ready to head off-

"Say, everyone…"

"Vivi…?" I looked at the princess worriedly.

"Everyone…" She muttered, I can sense conflict coming from her, "What… what should I do…?"

"…Listen, Vivi." Nami tells her, "We'll give you 12 hours to decide. Once we take back our ships at the Sandora River, we'll approach the Eastern Port JUST ONCE, at exactly noon tomorrow! We probably won't be able to drop anchor, but if you want to continue travelling with us, then that'll be the only chance for you to board! And this time, we'll welcome you as a pirate!"

"Since you're the princess of this country, we won't push you into coming." Sanji tells her as he descends down the rope via the opened window, we all following him one after another.

"Come with us, Vivi! You better come! No, just come right now!"

"Quit it, Luffy!" Usopp shouted.

"Vivi." I smiled at her, "Like I said in the baths, no matter what you choose, we'll respect it."

"Rein…"

"Come on, let's go!" Zoro called out.

"Got it!"

* * *

After descending down the window, we all boarded the duck squadron and took off across the desert. We all pretty much ran on without any trouble and the night is making it cool enough to not sweat up a storm.

"Hm… this is nice." Zoro smirked.

"So this is our final farewell to this desert country- Hey Luffy, when are you going to stop eating?" Usopp asked our captain who was still chewing on some meat he somehow snatched from somewhere.

"Alabastan meals sure are delicious!" He stated happily, "Sanji! Make them sometime!"

"I'm planning to." Sanji stated, "I was interested in their cuisines so I asked Terracotta-san for some recipes with some spices too."

"…Nami, are you alright?" Chopper asked our navigator worriedly. Nami is being a little quiet, too quiet and I'm feeling some sadness from her.

"Nami, want some meat?" Luffy asked, "Just a small piece though."

"…"

"Nami-san, you're thinking about Vivi-chan, right?" The blonde cook pointed out, "I understand how you're feeling, but thinking about isn't going to get you anywhere."

"…"

"Nami. Whatever Vivi chooses, we're going to accept it." I stated, "I know it is tough, since you two are pretty close, but chin up, alright?"

"…I… I'm going to give it up… for Vivi's sake…"

"…?"

"…The one billion beris…"

"OF COURSE YOU ARE!" We all shouted at her angrily.

"So it's about the money?!" Sanji cried.

"Ah! Usopp fell off!" Chopper cried.

"Nami! Don't act so misleading!" Zoro cried.

"Huh? What are you guys all worked up about?" She asked in surprise, "If it's about Vivi, it's no use worrying about it, right?"

"Hey! Usopp has fallen off!" The reindeer repeated.

"Just leave him."

"It's your fault!"

I groaned tiredly at the interaction. What was I thinking, Nami's a money grubber regardless of the situation…

* * *

"I've been waaaaaaiitiiiiiiiiiing for yoouuuuuuuuuu all!" Bon Clay declared posing, "Nice to meet you all again!"

And we just ignored that idiot as we unloads all of the stuff from the ducks.

"Time to say goodbye…" Chopper stated sadly.

"Thanks for the lift." I smiled as I stroke their beaks.

"Say goodbye to the king and that curly hair old man for us, okay?!" Luffy called out as the ducks ran off into the desert.

"Let's meet again some day for sure!" Bon Clay sobbed before regaining his composure, "Wait a damn second here!"

I picked up a few bags and proceeds to board the ship, ignoring their conversation as I entered below deck. I was then introduced to an extra presence on the ship.

Oh right. Robin kind of stowaway on our ship, didn't she…? I tracked down her presence to the baths, and choose to keep quiet as I slowly put away the supplies before returning up top to help with the sails.

I was then greeted with the kid-trio as I dubbed them dancing about with Bon Clay. When did that happen?

"So in other words…" Zoro explained, "Mr. 2, since you couldn't get off this island either due to the blockade, you were basically looking for ways to increase your allies, correct?"

"ACK!"

"Bon-chan?!"

"That's right! It's times like these, eras like the ones we lived in, when we the people must band together under the name of friendship and fight together!" Bon Clay cried.

"HELL YEAH!" The trio cheered along with him much to our dismay.

"Oh, jeez…" Nami sighed.

"Leave it, they are idiots for a reason…" I stated tiredly.

"We'll be counting on you all then!"

"Since when the hell were you here?!" Zoro cried as I nearly jumped back in fright. Where did they come from?! I didn't sense them anywhere at all!

I really need to work on my Observation Haki…

* * *

"Fire! Open fire!"

"Fire some normal cannon balls, damn it!" Luffy cried.

We all escaped into the open waters, and just as excepted, we ran right into the blockade and into the marines who are all firing iron harpoons right at us.

I was below deck with Chopper as we try to patch up the holes as fast as I can. Damn it, these harpoons are annoying but storing them up would be useful later.

I ignored the debate up top as I struggles to patch up new holes whenever we just patch the previous ones.

It also gives me a good time to consider how to introduce Robin into the group. Show I tell them her past? No, that's an invasion of privacy, and she has enough of that already. And she is really untrusting to anyone.

What can I do to make her more welcoming to us…?

"Rein! Get up here!"

I was knocked out of my thought and ran back up as their request, "What is it?! Are we in more trouble now?!"

"No, I want a second opinion." Nami stated, "In that book of yours, does Bon Clay escape and survive if he tries to be a decoy? And do we manage to get away if he does so?"

Oh, that scene. We came to that now, huh?

"Oh, he does not." I stated, "Ah! Before anyone else protest to it, I like to say that it would be a good thing for him."

"Really? How?" Sanji asked.

"Bon Clay." I looked at him, "You wanted to use BW in order to get Ivankov free from Impel Down, right?"

"Huh? How do you know?"

"Private source. But I like to say that it would be in your best interest to enter Impel Down this way." I pointed out, "Ivankov isn't planning on getting out anytime soon, he's hiding and waiting for the right moment. If you enter Impel Down, make a lot of noise and he'll take notice. You'll meet him that way."

"Ooooh~! Nice plan, butch girl~!" He laughed, "I like the way you think. You kind of reminds me of a certain someone I meet two years ago!"

"Huh?" Is it that face that was familiar to me?

"Yeah, this girl." He turns his face into a girl, "She has knowledge that shouldn't be there, and she helped me out in a pinch one time too!"

My eyes widen in shock at the face. It can't be…! She… She should be…!

"What's wrong, Rein?" Zoro asked worriedly, "You looked pale."

"Ah?! O-Oh, nothing… just a little heatstroke, I think…" I stuttered. I'll think about it later. First, we need to get out of here!

* * *

"Three minutes… It's time! Full speed ahead!" Nami commanded as we quickly sailed off.

I turned back to see Bon Clay's ship getting attacked by the marines ruthlessly. It burst into flames while the iron harpoons tear into its hull like paper before starting to sink.

"Bon-chan!" Luffy cried with tears flowing down his face, "We will never forget about you!"

I sighed slightly before returning below deck. The first step is done, time for the finale.

Hopefully, Bon-Clay would find Ivankov in Impel Down…

* * *

One after another, the boats all come at us with the ever intent to sink us. But unluckily for them, we are better at close quarters combat than anything else. And we took them down with relative ease.

After some time, we finally shook them off and made it to the eastern port. Just as the speech is starting and continuing.

"You heard her speech, right?" Zoro pointed out, "That was definitely Vivi's voice."

"Vivi…" Chopper muttered on the railings with Luffy.

"It's broadcasted from the coming-of-age ceremony in Alubarna." Sanji stated, "It means she decided not to come."

"No! It's only SOUND like her voice!" Our captain cried.

"Let's go." Nami tells us, "It is past noon."

"There's no way she wouldn't come!" Luffy cried, "Let's get off the ship and look for her! She'll be there for sure!"

"Guys, we got trouble!" Usopp cried, "The marines are heading this way!"

"How many ships?!" Zoro cried.

"At least two!"

"Damn it, let's go!" He called out.

"Everyone, turn starboard!" Nami commanded.

"Give it up, Luffy." Sanji tells our captain, "Her case is different from the rest of us when we joined."

"EVERYONE!"

We all paused as we saw Vivi and Carue near some rocks. I turned around as I waited for the moment.

"See! She DID come!" Luffy cheered.

"Turn the ship around! Quickly!" Usopp cheered.

"I've come to say goodbye!"

They all paused again as we turned our attention to the princess by the cliff. There was a pause before she starts speaking.

" _I…I can't come with you!"_ She called out from the speakers, _"But I want to thank you all for everything until now! I'd love to go on another adventure, but I can't! You see… I love my country too much! That's why I can't come with you! I… I…"_

I can feel her sadness, and I rubbed the tears from my eyes. She was a great friend, and we will meet again…

" _Although, I'll remain here now… If we meet again someday… will you call me your friend once more?!"_

"…Yeah! We'll always-!"

"Quiet!" Nami cried as she covers his mouth, "You can't reply, no matter what! The marines are watching her right now. If they have some proof of our connections with her, she'll be branded a criminal! Let's just say our goodbyes in silence."

He nodded grimly, as we slowly unraveled our bandages. With a mighty pump, we lift our arms up, showing to her our marks, our symbol of our friendship.

"Let's set sail!" Luffy called out.

Vivi… our friendship will never fade away! No matter what!

* * *

"Looks like the marines aren't chasing us anymore." Zoro pointed out.

"Uh huh…"

"…We manages to throw them off, right guys?!"

"Uh huh…"

"…Ah jeez… what's with those lifeless replies?" He asked them, the group that are sobbing over Vivi's departure which does not include me.

"We miss her~!" They sobbed.

"…Well, I'm going to leave them to you." I tells him as I entered the cabin, "I've got some things to write-"

"Looks like we left the island."

I stopped right by the door as it swung opened, revealing the stowaway who simply walked passed me.

"GAAHHHH!" Everyone screamed in fright as I turned around to face her. Wait, is she wearing my outfit from Risa?!

"Here to avenge your organization, are you?!" Zoro growled as he drew out Wado Ichimonji.

"What are YOU doing here?!" Nami cried out in terror.

"Oh my~! What a lovely lady~!" Sanji cooed, obviously.

"Enemy Attack! Enemy Attack!" Usopp cried out in his loudspeaker which I have no idea he even in possession of.

"Ah! It's you!" Luffy stated in surprise, "So you're alive?"

"Please now." Robin tells us as her arms popped out and hits the weapons off of their wielder's hands, "Don't point those savage things at me. I told you all before, didn't I?"

"Since when did YOU get on the ship?!" Nami cried, before looking at me with rage-filled eyes, "And REIN! Why didn't you say something?! I thought you have that Observation Haki thing?!"

"Oh, um…" I nervously rubbed the back of my neck, "I… forgot?"

"Now, now, I'm sure she knows that I'm here from the start." Robin tells her as she takes out a lounge chair from storage, "And these clothes, they are yours right, Ms. Dragon?"

"Huh? Oh, you can have them." I assures her.

"Rein!" Nami screamed at me before turning her attention back onto Robin, "Just what are you up to?!"

"Monkey D. Luffy." She stated to our captain, "You haven't forgotten what you did to me, did you now?"

"Huh?"

"Damn you, Luffy!" Sanji cried as he grabbed Luffy by his collar, "What did you do?! What the hell did you do to this find lady?!"

"Hey, stop lying!" Our captain shouted at her, "I never did anything to you!"

"Oh no, you did." She tells him as she sits on the established lounge chair, "You committed an unbearable act upon me, for which you must take responsibility."

"LUFFY!" The blonde cook growled as he shakes the rubber man around even more.

"Sanji, calm down…" I tells him.

"You're not making any sense! Just what is it you want me to do?" Luffy asked.

"Let me join your crew."

"WHAT?!"

"You made me live when I wished for death." She explained, "That is your crime. I have no place to go, nor return to. So let me stay on this ship."

"Oh really?" The rubber man stated in surprise, "That's too bad. Oh well, there no other choice. It's fine by me."

"LUFFY!" Everyone cried out in shock at his decision.

"Don't worry!" Luffy laughed, "She's not a bad guy!"

I looked at him with a tired sigh, that's Luffy for you. Then everyone else turns their attention to me, before dragging me into the cabin and locking the door.

"Okay, spill it!" Nami growled, "You knew she is coming aboard, didn't you?"

"You could just warn us beforehand!" Usopp cried.

"No spoilers, remember?" I tells them, "Luffy gave his order."

"You don't have to say it in front of him!" Our navigator cried.

"Right, right, I apologized for that." I sighed, before turning to the door, "Oh, and by the way, no peeking using Devil Fruit powers! And don't try to brush it off! I can see those eyes and ears!"

"…"

Silence filled the room before some petals fluttered about before dissipating.

"Eavesdropping little…" I muttered.

"Okay, now spill it." Zoro stated, "Is she trustworthy?"

"…If you mean if she will backstab us, then no." I stated firmly, "You heard what she said. She has nowhere to go or return to. This place is the only other place she could seek shelter at. She has a past so dark that it haunts her every waking moment of her life."

"But can she be trusted?" Nami asked.

"Yes, she won't be close like any of us, but she will cooperate when she can." I stated. At least, until the Water 7 arc. Then shit is going to be crazy."

"…Fine, we'll trust in your judgement on this." Zoro nodded, "But the first moment she show any signs…"

"Yeah, yeah, you'll cut her up, I know." I nodded. Satisfied with my answer, they all left the cabin with me alone in this place.

I decided to head down to the woman's bedroom and write down in the logbook.

Robin, I have no worries. At the moment, at least. Now, I'm more concerned with what Bon Clay showed me.

That face… she shouldn't be… but why…?

Why is my dead sister doing here in this world?

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Dun dun dun~! Plot twist! Rein's sister is in the One Piece universe! Is she going to be an enemy, or an ally?! Only time could tell!**

 **And so, this marks the end of the Alabasta arc! And onwards towards Jaya!**

 **So yes, Robin finally joined in, and now the interaction would be amazing from here on out!**

 **And expect some little yuri moments sprinkled here and there~!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	21. Ch 21:Rain, with chances of falling ship

**Chapter 21: Rain, with a chance of falling ships!**

* * *

Right after I manages to somewhat convince all of our crew to have somewhat of a little faith in our latest member/stowaway, we all returned to our mundane tasks as usual on the ship as usual.

This time, however, Usopp decided to take this chance to interview, or interrogate as he said it, her. I, finally changed back into my usual attire, decided to watch the whole thing unfold.

"Listen here now!" Our sniper cried slamming his hand on the table, "You better answer my questions truthfully, alright?!"

"Right." She smiled.

"Okay! First, what is your name?!" He then blinked before remembering his manners, "Oh, I'm Usopp, nice to meet you."

"Please to meet you, I'm Nico Robin." She greeted back amused

"Alright then, Nico Robin. What's your occupation?"

"An archaeologist."

"Archaeologist?!"

"Yeah." She nodded with a smile, "I came from a long line of archeologists. It's kind of my family's trade."

"Ah, ah, I see… that kind of family, huh…?" Usopp nodded understandingly as he writes down what he heard much to my amusement. This is more like an interview after all~! "And then…?"

"Since I was 8, I was an archaeologist and had my head placed on a bounty." She explains to him, "For the past 20 years, I had to live hiding from the marines."

"From when you're eight?!" Usopp cried, "All by yourself?!"

"Yes." She nodded, "Since a child can't sail the seas alone, I've placed myself under the care of many villains by following their orders in hopes of survival and to achieve my own goals."

"So Crocodile is one such villain?" He asked.

"Yeah, all for the sake of the Rio Poneglyph…"

"Rio…?"

She shrugs off that question before continuing, "Thanks to that, I'm quite skilled with moving behind the scenes. That should come handy to your crew."

"Hm… you sure sounds confident in that front…" Usopp asked, "What would you say is your specialty?"

"…Assassination~"

"Luffy! After careful investigation, I've come to the conclusion that this woman is too scary!" He cried in fright.

And of course Luffy and Chopper are having too much fun with her powers to care a bit. "Are you even listening?!" Our sniper yelled at them.

"I'm sure she said that in jest, Usopp." I laughed, before flinching when I felt a pinch on my buttcheeks. I looked down at her, she giving me a smile and a wink as well. God damn, my face is all red now… was she this much of a flirt in the manga…?

"Don't go falling for her, Rein!" Usopp yelled at me.

"I-I'm not!" I denied, although the thought of her going to town with me is a little tempting-STOP! Stop, stop! Don't think too much! It's how she play you in!

"Pathetic. Getting handled so easily…" Nami sighed sitting on the railings next to me, "He's crazy for even accepting in the first place. You were the vice-president of a secret criminal organization. A partner to Crocodile of all people! Even if you have fooled Luffy and Rein, you won't fool me! I'll kick you out at the first sign of suspicious activity!"

"Fufufu, I'll keep that in mind." Robin smiled before producing a bag of gems, "Too bad you're so distrusting… I've brought some of Crocodile's jewels with me and-"

"I LOVE YOU SO MUCH, BIG SIS~!"

"Oi, oi, oi, oi…" Zoro and Usopp deadpanned at her as our navigator pretty much swooned over her the moment jewels are introduced.

"Nami has been bribed!" Our sniper growled.

"Damn her underhanded tactics…" Our swordsman muttered.

"Ah~! Love!" Sanji cooed as I watch him pretty much danced his way down from the kitchen, passed me to our latest member, "Drifting love~ My jet black body is nod but a driftwood caught in your stream, struck by the lightning that is your beauty~! My body is sent to fall deeper down the currents of love~!" He places the cake down with a steaming cup of tea in front of her, "Your snack, my beauty~"

"Oh, thank you." Robin smiled in delight.

"Well, he's to be expected…" Zoro pointed out.

"Yeah. He was a lost cause from the start." Usopp added in, "No choice! We'll have to be the last defense for this crew!"

"Usopp!"

"Huh?"

"Chopper~" Luffy mimicked with Robin's arms acting as the antlers; the kiddie-trio all barrel down into laughter and fun within seconds, leaving the first mate to growled slightly at the quick change in attitude.

"How nice…" Robin pointed out, "Is it always this lively?"

"Yeah, pretty much." Zoro shrugged.

"Wait till you see meal time." I pointed out with a smile, "You'll see what a black hole stomach really is."

"I'll be looking forward for that, Ms. Dragon." She smiled at me.

"Rein…" The swordsman pulled me close to whisper to my ear, "Are you really sure she isn't plotting anything?"

"Yes, I'm positive." I whispered back, "And yes, I know her expressions are plastic as hell, but she does that for a good reason."

"Oh my…" Robin suddenly spoke out, "I didn't expect some romance on a pirate ship."

"WE'RE NOT DATING!" We shouted at her.

"Oh, is that so?" She smiled, "Then may I have Ms. Dragon?"

"H-HUH?!" I blushed red in shock and embarrassment.

"It was in jest." She chuckled, "Although, you do fit into my type."

Oh god, this is going to be a usual thing, isn't it…?

* * *

That night, Nami put me on first watch as punishment for not telling the crew about the stowaway. Not that I'm complaining, it gave me some time to think and read up on a few things.

First on the list is the notes on Haki I got from Sabo. I'm the only one that have a form of Haki right so I thought I gave it a try. Then I decided to put it aside till next time once I remember that they are in some sort of code. Maybe Zoro can help me with this…

Speaking of Haki, I wonder if I have explained properly to them about it… The way Haki was introduced in the manga is very subtle, so I can't really tell them how to activate it… My best bet is just tell them it exist and hopefully they came out with the answer themselves…

Next is the encyclopedia Ignis gave me back in Alabasta, the Grand Line Encyclopedia: lite ver. I never really got the time to read up once we left, with the marines chasing us and all that. So this is the next opportune time for it. It never hurts to have some knowledge beforehand.

Thankfully it's a half moon tonight, meaning more light for me. I opened up the first page and I was surprised at the amount of islands are on this thing.

All seven starting islands are listed here, along with Whiskey Peaks. One was an island that is nothing but mountains and forests like Little Garden but lack the dinosaurs and replace them with giant sized animals. Thank gods we didn't pick that one.

And then there are islands that we have been to that are listed here. Little Garden, of course; Drum Kingdom, Alabasta, and the next island on our route is the supposed autumn island. This one is Maple Island, commonly known as the island of red trees. It is home to a species of maple trees which saps are sweeter and thicker than ordinary maple syrup.

But it is also home to a species of violent beetles that attack anyone that tried to take even a drop of sap. The culture on it is that of woodcutters and bug-catchers, not surprisingly with the amount of trees it has. The entire island is basically one big forest!

If we went here instead of Skypiea, it would be interesting to see.

"Having a nice night, Ms. Dragon?"

I looked down from the crow's nest, Robin looking up from the deck below, in her hand is a cup of steaming… something. I can't really tell.

"You too, Robin?" I asked with a smile, "Can't sleep?"

"I'm more of a nocturnal type of person." She explained as she leaned on the railings watching the waves.

"I take it it's from your life being on the run." I pointed out.

"…You could say that."

We both remain in silence as we did our own thing, I decided to skim a few pages before heading to the DF section. Damn, that's a lot of Devil Fruits. There's like ten models for the Human-Human Fruit alone! Not to mention all the of known Paramecia types, which take up half the page.

Speaking of Paramecia, I wonder what the Flower-Flower Fruit looked like…

"Ms. Dragon?"

"Hm? Is there something wrong?" I asked worriedly.

"No, I just… want to say thank you."

I blinked as I stared down at her in surprise. Robin thanking me? For what?

"Why are you…?"

"You didn't warn your crew about me when you board, when you should have." She pointed out, "You could have me kicked off before we left Alabasta. But you didn't."

"…I know about Ohara." I tells her, her flinching form speaks volume about what she is thinking, "And I know the hardships you endured up till now. I won't say that I understand it, I couldn't no matter how much I pictured it, but I will say this:"

"What your friend told you, it is true. You have comrades out in the sea. You just aren't looking at them properly."

I waited for her answer, which is silence and decided not to say anymore and went back into reading. They have a Sex-Sex Fruit?! That shit is real?! And it… gives the user the ability to change people's gender… well, that's kind of lame, and misleading considering the name-

I flinched when I felt an arm hugging me, I looked down to see Robin's arms sticking out of the wood hugging me across the chest.

…Robin really want to hear that so much, huh…?

"…Truly, thank you." She stated.

"…No problem." I smiled as I held her arms.

We stayed like that for the rest of my entire shift.

* * *

The next day, early in the morning after breakfast, we all just lazed around in the deck as Nami checks our trajectory and direction.

"Ms. Navigator, is the Log Pose alright?" Robin asked her.

"Straight West-Northwest!" She exclaimed in joy, "Everything a-okay, sister!"

"…she gave you some more jewels, didn't she?" Usopp pointed out.

"Sanji! When are the snacks ready?!" Luffy called out.

"Wait a little more!" Sanji tells him from the kitchen, before coming out with a tray of sweets. "Today's an Alabastan special!"

"Oh! Looks nice!" The sniper said in awe as he and the kiddie-trio ran to the tray he placed on the railings before the blonde cook brings a tray to us female members.

"Robin-chan, Nami-san, Rein-chan, here are your desserts for today~"

"Thank you, Sanji-kun." Nami smiled as we all picked up the slice of cake.

"Hey, Nami. Do you think there'll be snow on the next island?" Luffy asked.

"You _still_ want to see snow?" She asked him annoyed taking a bite of the cake.

"The island after Alabasta should be an autumn island." Robin pointed out.

"Oh yeah, I've read about it in the book." I stated chewing on the cake before swallowing my bite, "The one with the red forest, right? Maple Island?"

"Autumn, eh? Autumn's fine by me, too!"

"You'll love it there!" I added on, "They has a really sweet syrup that makes-" I paused when I felt something landing on my head.

"Rain…?" Zoro pointed out.

"I don't think this is rain…" Sanji stated.

"Hail, then?" Usopp stated.

"No… I think something's falling d-" The blonde cook paled as did we all saw what he saw.

From above us, a gigantic ship fell down from the sky above much to our shock and terror before the very thing splashes into the ocean below, shaking up some massive waves that tilts the Going Merry back and forth wildly. We all screamed in fright as we tried to hold onto the ship tightly as we could and not fall over into the waters below.

"WHATWHATWHAT?!" Nami cried in pure terror hugging the mast as hard as she could from what I can see.

"A dream! Yes, I must be dreaming!" Usopp exclaimed in denial.

"A dream?!" Chopper cried before blowing a sigh in relief, "Whew, what a relief…"

"Not a dream, Chopper!" I called out holding on to the railings as tightly as I can, "This is very REAL!"

"Be careful!" Sanji calls out to us, "There's more stuff falling down!"

All of it was a blur as there were commotion here and there while I just struggles on the railings as the ships just rocks back and forth violently; it's like a freaking thrill ride and I hate thrill rides! Soon, that hell is over as the remains of the galleon floats next to us somewhat harmlessly.

I dropped back down on the deck like a ragdoll with a huge sigh of relief, "Glad that's over…"

"Why did a ship fall from the sky?!" Luffy asked in confusion.

"Yeah, talk about bizarre…" Sanji nodded.

"There doesn't seems to be anything else up in the sky…" Zoro pointed out.

"AHH!"

"What's wrong, Nami-san?!" The blonde cook asked worriedly.

"What do we do?!" She panicked looking at the Log Pose, "The Log Pose, it's broken! It's stuck pointing up!"

"No, you're mistaken." Robin pointed out, sweating a bit from exhaustion I bet, "There must be another island nearby, whose stronger magnetic field must have caused the Log to switch! If the needle is pointing upwards…" she swallowed a spit before answering, "A Sky Island…"

"Sky Island…" I stated as I looked at the clouds on top.

"A-Are you kidding me?!" Nami cried at her, "A Sky Island?!"

"There's an island floating in the sky?! " Luffy cried.

"So the ship and the skeletons fell down from an island all the way up there?!" Usopp pointed out in shock, looking up to check, "I don't see anything that resembles an island, though…"

"You're a little mistaken." The archeologist explained, "It'll be more accurate to say that there's a 'sea' floating in the sky."

"A SEA?!"

"That makes it even less sense…" The blonde cook points out.

"AWESOME!" Usopp and Luffy cheered in complete awe.

"Okay everyone! Turn the rudder upwards! Full speed to Sky Island!" Our captain commanded.

"Like that's possible!" I cried slapping his head hard.

"But to be honest, I've never seen any 'Sky Islands' myself, nor have I heard of one…" Robin added on.

"Exactly! That is absurd!" Nami cried, "An island or sea or whatever floating in the sky?! That can't be right. The Log Pose must be broken, that's all!"

"No, Ms. Navigator. What you should be worrying about now is not how to fix the Log Pose, but how to get into the sky." The dark haired woman explained, "No matter how bizarre the situations this ship gets into, no matter how great the panic that befalls it, one must never doubt the Log Pose. That is an ironclad rule of this sea."

"When sailing the Grand Line, doubt the common sense, but not the Log Pose. Because wherever that needles points, there will always be an island."

Nami gulped nervously, I decided to take this time to join my captain and Usopp with investigating the sinking wreckage.

I toss off my shirt and pants along with my boots on the deck and dived in. It was pretty hard to search about the place, with the lack of real space for me to swim under the wood. But I did manages to find something interesting.

Shells, solid-colored shells.

If I'm correct, these must be Dials; that means this ship must have been to Skypiea at one point. These will definitely come in useful in the near future. I collected them into a small intact cloth I found floating about and bundle them up.

When I surfaced to take some air, I saw that the wreckage is almost completely sank in the sea, and Luffy is drowning with Usopp carrying him.

"Luffy! Hang in there!"

"BFFTPFFMNN!"

"What the hell are you three doing?!" I hear Nami screaming from the ship.

"I got him." I stated as I swam next to him and grabbed him by the back. Slowly and steadily, I swam back to the Going Merry and with Zoro's help, get our hammer of a captain up onto the deck. I followed suit, climbing back on the deck soaking in sea water while dumping my finds on the deck.

I rinsed my hair a bit, trying to get the excess water out of them. "Is Luffy alright?" I asked.

"Guys, guys!"

"I take that as a yes."

"I did it!" Luffy stated proudly, "I found something super-duper amazing! Check it out!" He then produced a map for us to see.

"Skypiea…" Nami read it in confusion, "Does this mean there's really an island up in the sky…?"

"Woohoo! Usopp! Chopper! There's really a sky island!" Our captain cheered.

"An island of dreams! We can go to the island of dreams!" Usopp cheered along.

"An island of dreams?!" Chopper cried in awe.

"You're all making such a big fuss over what's barely a silver of possibility." Nami sighed, "There's plenty of fake maps in this world, you know!" And the three kiddie-trio all gave her the despairing face to my amusement, "A-Ah… sorry… i-it does exists! Absolutely! Y-Yeah! But…"

"I have no freaking clue how to get up there!" She cried slamming her hand on the mast hard.

"Ah, Nami… please be gentle with the ship…" Usopp stated worriedly.

"Well you're the navigator!" Luffy shouted, "Do something about it!"

"There are some things in this world you just can't DO SOMETHING ABOUT!"

"It doesn't matter! We're going to the sky and that's that!"

"Okay, that's enough." I stated pulling Luffy by the cheeks, "Captain, a ship can't exactly fly into the sky on its own, you know. No matter how crazy this ocean can be!"

"Rein's right." Nami nodded, "Like what Robin just said, what we need is information. If that ship really went into the sky, then it must be possible for ours to go too! We need to find any remaining logs or journals on that ship somehow!"

"But it's already sunk into the bottom of the ocean." Usopp pointed out.

"If it sank, then we've got to salvage it!" She declared.

"RIGHT ON!" Usopp and Luffy agreed energetically.

"Like hell we can!" Zoro shouted.

"What does 'salvage' means?" Chopper asked Robin curiously.

"It means lifting sunken ships back to the surface." She explained to him, "But that ship is too big for that to be possible."

"Then we just to go to it, then." I added on with a smirk, "Usopp! Time for your inventive brain to go to work!"

* * *

A few minutes later, Usopp manages to build some diving gear with some barrels and hoses for our three top fighters.

"I got to say, this is some crazy stuff you're pressing me into…" Luffy pointed out.

"Nami-san! I promise I'll find some clues on how to go the sky for you!" Sanji cooed.

"Thanks~! I leave it to you~!" She smiled.

"Dive down with no worries, lads!" Our sniper proclaimed proudly, "My design in flawless!"

And on cue, a large fish swims up and devours the last floating remnants of the ship. I patted Zoro's barrel as I gave him a thumbs-up, "Good luck."

"You're not that confident in this either, huh…?" He stated with a dead-pan.

The three of them soon dived into the ocean below, as they communicate with us via the hoses that supplies them with air. I left them to Nami since there isn't much I could change until we actually reach Skypiea, decided to rummage through my findings on the wreckage.

I manages to get a good pile of shells, although whether they are Dials or not is a gamble. I take one of them, a blue one that looks like one on a snail, and pressed in the tip. A click is heard and a gust of wind is blown out of the opening.

Ah, an Air Dial, or was it Breath Dial…? Can't quite remember the actual name, but somewhere along those lines. This Dial will definitely come in handy.

"SAL~VAGE~! SAL~VAGE~! SAL~VAGE~!"

I paused in checking another shell when I heard that song. I turned around to see a large ship floating towards us, the tropical monkey motif is very apparent on this boat, with the Jolly Roger and the bananas on its sides, especially the large monkey head at the tip.

"And STOP!" A whistle blows.

"Aye-aye, sir!"

Yup, that monkey from that alliance looking for the City of Gold, right…? What was his name…?

"Is this where the ship sank?!"

"Aye-aye sir, boss!"

"Boss? You mean me!" The man standing in front shouted, "Any sunken ship on these parts belong to me! 'Salvage King' Masira! UKIKI!"

Ah, Masira! That's the name!

"Great, now a bunch of weirdos popped out of nowhere…" Nami stated worriedly, "Just when we're busy too…"

"HEY!" Masira shouted at us, "What are you guys doing there?! This is my territory!"

"Territory?"

"That's right!" He declared proudly, "Any ships that sinks in this part of the sea belongs to me! You aren't getting your grubby lil' hands on it, are ya now?! Well?!"

"It seems he's here to salvage the ship…" Robin pointed out.

"O-Oh right, they were chanting about it just now." Usopp stated out.

"What do we do?" Nami wonders.

"Oh, I know!" I walked up to the railings and asked them with a smile, "Mind helping us with salvaging this ship?!"

"Huh?"

"W-Wait a moment, Rein!" The sniper shouted at me, "I-Isn't that a little…?"

"We wanted to salvage the ship, but we don't really know how." I explained, "Mind lending us a hand, Salvage King?"

"Oh, why in the hell would we do that?!" He shouted at me, "You all could be using us to get some treasure from that ship! Well, too bad! The treasure in there is mine, and mine alone!"

"Like hell it is!" Nami shouted, "Any treasure we find-"

"You can have the treasure."

"WHAT?!"

Our navigator dragged me to her by my swimsuit with a furious glare, "You are not serious about that, are you?!"

"Look, we need information, right?" I pointed out, "And with Masira here, we might get even more in the long run. Besides, there aren't any worthwhile treasure on that ship, anyway."

"And how can you be so sure?!" She shouted, I gave a pointed glare at her in response. We had a glaring contest for about a few seconds, before she realizes, "Oh. OH! Is this-?"

"Yup, and I'm helping us a far bit by asking him." I added, "With his help, we'll be able to get some more information and get to Skypiea faster."

"Oh, I see!" Usopp nodded.

"Huh? Is there something I'm missing?" Robin asked curiously.

"Oh, Rein here-"

The sniper quickly cover up Chopper's mouth before he can spills out my secret. "S-She's just have great insight!" He covered up with a nervous smile.

"Huh… is that so…?" She looked at us confused, but not completely convinced.

"Besides, almost anything on that ship is pretty much rusted or completely unusable at this point." I pointed out, "Except maybe one or two things."

"Okay, if that's the point…" She sighed as she let go of me, "But if there are anything worth something, I'm at least bargaining for it!"

"Depends." I shrugged, before turning to Masira, "So how about it?! You can help us salvage it, you keep the treasure while we just look for any information on it?! Not a bad deal, right?!"

"Hm… that's a pretty good offer…" He muttered before giving me a thumbs-up and a grin, "But if you mean it, then okay, sure! I'll help you guys out!"

"Thank you!" I called back to him, "Oh, almost forgot! There are some of our people down there, so warn your guys to stay clear from them! We'll let our guys know about this too!"

"Aye-aye, lady!" He shouted before starting issuing orders to his crew.

I went back to the hose and tells the three of them, "Hey, guys! You got people coming your way! They are friendly, so don't attack them!"

"Oh, okay!" Luffy called back.

"I think I saw them." Zoro stated, "Metal suits and some kind of metal claw device, right?"

"Yeah, that's them!"

As the salvage pirates goes on with their business with Usopp and Chopper looking at them with awe, I asked Nami and Robin to come with me to the shells. It'll be easier to sort them out with more hands on deck.

"So you want us to help sort out _seashells_?" Our navigator asked angrily, "I liked pretty things as much as any girl, but aren't this a little out of place for something like this?"

"Oh, these aren't normal shells." I tells them as I picked up the Breath Dial I found. I pressed the tip and blew some air into her face.

"…Okay, consider me intrigued…" Nami stated in surprise, "What are these shells?"

"Dials." I explained, "Special shells that are found on Sky Islands. I can't exactly remember the exact details, but they are essential for our time on one."

"You seems to be rather well-informed about Sky Islands, Ms. Dragon." Robin stated in surprise, "Where did you get such information?"

"In the encyclopedia." I lied, which isn't exactly a lie. That encyclopedia has a page for sky islands on it, but not much about their culture and way of life. Hell, Skypiea isn't even on that page, "I wasn't exactly planning on go to any one of them soon, though…"

"Ah, that makes sense." She nodded.

"Oh! This one makes smoke!" I turned to our navigator making some white smoke comes out of the shell. Ah, the Cloud Dial, that would be useful too.

"Let's see…" I pick out a bluish shell, a different shade from the Breath Dial, and pressed it. A blast of fire shoots out of it and burns the top of the railings. I looked at it worriedly before putting it aside carefully, "…Whoops?" Flame Dial, get…?

"We need to be careful with some of these, huh…?" Robin chuckles before activating another one, a blast of air shoots out, barely grazed my cheek and hits the metal part of the mast. We all paused as we watch the archeologist numbly placed that shell in the small pile. An Axe Dial, huh…?

"…Let's try point them all out towards the sea before testing them alright?" Nami pointed out.

"Agreed." We all nodded.

* * *

In the end, we all manages to get several Dials from the shells I found. An Impact Dial, to my glee; some Breath Dials and Cloud Dials, a couple of Axe Dials, a Flame Dial and a few Flash Dials to my surprise. We manages to get several good stuff at once, huh?

I've bag them all for safe-keeping and left them in the cabin for later.

"AHHHHHHHH!"

And then we found ourselves looking at a freaking gigantic turtle that seems to be chewing on the wreckage with our three crewmembers in it.

"W-What am I even looking at…?" Nami cried, "A-A continent?!"

"I dunno! I dunno!" Usopp cried, "This is a dream! This has to be a dream!"

"A dream?! Really!?" Chopper stated in surprise.

"Whew… thank gods it's just a dream~…" They three all sighed in relief.

"Oh my, did those three get swallowed whole with the ship?" And then Robin brought them back to cruel reality.

"Don't state it so bluntly!" Usopp cried.

"It appears to look that way. Their hoses _are_ sticking out of its mouth-"

"JUST STOP IT!"

"AGGHHHHH! Luffy, Zoro and Sanji were all eaten alive!" Chopper shouted in panic.

"Nah, I doubt they're going to be eaten this easily…" I pointed out.

"This is all your fault for sending them to the sea floor of the fucking Grand Line!" Our sniper yelled at Nami, "You told them they'd be completely safe without a shred of evidence!"

"I guess you're right…" Nami sighed dejectedly before shouting at the turtle, "Sorry guys!"

"…Okay, that's just…" I sighed at her lack of empathy.

And then, the boat starts to shake and pull towards the sea monster to our shock, "Well, this is to be expected." Robin pointed out worriedly, "If we don't cut the lines, this ship is going to be dragged under water."

"You got to be kidding me!" Nami cried.

"Robin! You're strong, right?!" Chopper pointed out, "Can't you do something?!"

"That's a little… too big for me to handle…"

"R-Rein! Got any ideas?!" Usopp cried.

"Not a moment, no…" I stated worriedly.

"C'mon boys!" We heard the crew on Masira's ship shouted with determination, "Reel in the ropes! We've gotta save our boss! Our pride as the Masira Pirates are at stake here!"

"T-They're right…!" Our sniper nodded, "It's times like these we've got to show them our teamwork!"

"Usopp!"

"Aye-aye!"

"Cut the ropes and secure our safety!" Nami commanded.

"Are you a devil!?" Usopp cried angrily.

"A devil!" Chopper cried in response.

"Like hell we are doing that!" I shouted at her, "Our captain is still in there!"

But then, in a blink of an eye, the sky suddenly turns dark much to our shock, I need a moment to adjust to the sudden lack of light in my surroundings.

"W-What's going on?!" Usopp cried.

"The day turned to night?!" Chopper exclaimed in shock.

"It can't be!" Nami stated checking her watch, "It's nowhere near nighttime right now!"

"Just what the hell is going on?!" Our sniper screamed in panic, "Luffy! Zoro! Sanji!"

"I-It's an omen!" We hear the crew of Masira panicking over, "They say that monsters appear when day switch with night! We gonna sink if we stay here! Let's hurry up and rescue boss!"

And at that moment, a bundle shoots out of the water, Luffy landing on the deck with a wet thump. Zoro and Sanji following right behind as they climbed back up with a bundle on each of their backs. "Zoro! Sanji!" Usopp cried in relief, "Thank gods you guys are alive! We need to get away from that turtle ASAP!"

"Turtle? What are you talking about?" Zoro asked.

"The one behind you." I pointed out.

"WHOA! What the hell is that?!" He and Sanji shouted in shock after witnessing the giant turtle.

"You JUST notice?!" Usopp shouted at them, "You guys were swallowed by that thing!"

"Hey, the turtle's mouth is open." I pointed out for them, "That explains how you guys got out. Wonder why though…?"

"Huh?! When did it became night all of the sudden?!" I heard Luffy cry in the background.

"Never mind that, right now!" Usopp cried as he and the guys all ran about trying to unfurl the sails in a hurry, "Help us get ready to sail!"

"HEY!" A huge splash later and Masira lands on our deck dripping wet, "You guys alright?! Damn, that was some turtle!"

"We're fine!" Luffy stated with a grin.

"That's a relief!" He sighed.

"Hey, you better asked your men to cut the ropes!" I tell him.

"On it, hey guys-!"

"B-B-B-B-BOSS!" We heard his crew cried out to him, "W-W-W-W-W-Watch out!"

"Hm? What?"

He turned around and froze with his eyes wide and mouth gaping open in fear. We all followed suit and almost everyone just froze in place as we witness what scared the monkey man and the giant turtle so much.

Over the horizon, there are several shadowy figures ten times the size of Giants standing tall with equally huge spear and enormous wings on their backs. One of them moved, and everyone went into a panic.

"MONSTERSSS!"

Everyone went full throttle as the paddles are out and everyone, I mean everyone including Nami and Robin, all rushed out to help paddle ourselves out of there. By the time we reached where there are light, we all slumped back down on the decks in exhaustion.

"I… can't believe it…" Zoro panted out.

"Yeah… can't believe how huge those things were…" Sanji stated as he lit a new cigarette, "Today sure has been one hell of a day…"

"A huge galleon drops from the sky…" The swordsman listed.

"The Log Pose started pointing up…" Nami carried on.

"And then some weird monkey shows up to salvage the ship…" Usopp added in.

"Then we manages to get a deal with him…" I pointed out.

"But a huuuuuge turtle shows up and swallowed the sunken ship whole…" Chopper stated out.

"Day became night…" Robin chimed in.

"And finally, those monsters ten times larger than Giants appeared!" Luffy concluded.

"Yeah, that last part really scared the bananas out of me…" Masira stated.

We all stared at our new unwilling passenger with surprised looks on our faces, "Oh, and sorry for intruding…" He laughed nervously.

"Nah, its fine!" Luffy chuckles, "Besides, let's check out the loot we found!"

"Oh yeah! Let's do that!" Nami cheered as we all rushed to see what kind of things Luffy and the others found in the wreckage.

After a few rummaging here and there, I found myself correct about my assumption with the usual rusty and old pottery and metals on sprawled all over the deck. I took notice of the waver among them but keep quiet for now.

"Damn it, I hate it when Rein is right about this!" She sighed tiredly, "Why do you think that you even went underwater in the first place?! Look at all this junk! Not a single clue on how to get to the sky at all!"

"I told you already, there weren't any clues down there!" Zoro stated.

"Your swordsman friend is right, missy." Masira tells her, "I may not been down there for very long, but I can tell you won't find any logs or real records on that ship. Paper doesn't last very long when exposed to the elements, so I doubt there are any logbooks still intact in a hundred year old ship."

"That, and that ship has clearly been attacked by some great foe long ago." Sanji added in, "Everything there were wrecked and broken, with nothing real noteworthy in it. The only things that were even intact are the stuff we brought back."

"But then, why the armor?" I asked as I watch Luffy walking about in a full rusty armor with glee.

"Oh, Luffy brought that back himself." Zoro pointed out.

"That explains a lot…" I sighed before turning to Robin, "So, our archeologist friend! What do you make of these?"

"Hm… It's my assumption but if what the captain is wearing is any indication, that ship is indeed a ship from the South Blue about 200 years ago." She explained, "Base on the sword he is holding, I would say it would be a vessel of royal roots."

"Oh, that's pretty interesting." I nodded in understanding, "And all that by looking at the armor? You are good at what you do."

"Thanks for the compliment~" She winked at me, I blushing in response.

"But not essential to our quest!" Nami groaned, "Why did I even think that this would be a good idea to being with…?"

"Well, too bad for this…" Masira sighed, "Guess I'll have to report this ship to be a bust to the old man…"

"The old man?" Usopp asked curiously.

"Yeah! The leader of Saruyama Alliance!" He stated proudly, "He along with my brother and I all stationed around these seas to search for the long lost City of Gold!"

"Gold?!" Nami asked enthusiastically, "A City of GOLD?!"

"Yeah, according to the old man, his ancestor has stated that he found a City of Gold centuries ago." He explained, "It was never discovered however, and he was sentenced to death for lying. The old man wanted to see if it were real and stayed on that island searching for proof!"

"What an amazing sounding guy!" Luffy stated in awe.

"To find proof to clear his ancestor's name, huh…?" Zoro smirked.

"City of Gold…" Sanji mused over, "Where have I heard that before…?"

"Say, would you think your boss might be able to help us with our problem?" I asked.

"Oh yeah, you guys said you were looking for information about something on that ship, right?" Masira stated, "What exactly are you looking for?"

"Oh, we want to go to the Sky Island." Luffy stated.

"Sky Island?!" The monkey man cried in shock, "Come to think of it… Shoujou has mentioned that the wreck just appeared out of nowhere… Oh my god, it came from the sky?!"

"Yup!" Our captain nodded, "We even got a map of one too!"

"Hm… a Sky Island, huh…" He mumbled before giving us a thumbs-up, "Sure! Why not! It is impossible things like that that draws me to the old man in the first place! I can take you to him! I got an Eternal Pose for Jaya with me right now!"

"Alright then! Let's set sail to Jaya!"

And with that, the Skypiea arc commences!

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Alright! Finally done with this chapter! Had a little trouble with how to write this, but manages to finish this! Alright, now to Jaya!**

 **I also let to thank all the reviews and those that favourite and followed this story. It's a big moral boost to me to know that people enjoyed what I wrote.**

 **Also, shouts out for that anon review. Too bad it is an anon review so I won't be able to properly thank you, but thanks for writing what you wrote. What you said really warmed my heart, especially when there are many that really criticised a lot of my work.**

 **Not that I hate criticism, but some of them seems a little… vague in terms of what they are criticising…**

 **Also,** _Chaosrin_ **, thank you for your reviews, and I'm planning on adjusting some chapters soon later.**

 **And finally, I'll try to cut down the Yuri tones a little, maybe tell me how you want it? I will adjust here and there, but don't get your hopes too high. I'm not too comfortable with romance stuff, nor am I good at it…**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	22. Ch 22:A Daydreamer

**Chapter 22: A Daydreamer.**

After an hour of sailing, we all waiting anxiously for the arrival of Jaya. We all took to standing about the deck watching over the horizon for any sign of land.

"Anything yet, Usopp?" Nami asked.

"Nope, nothing yet." He replied her.

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Zoro asked our guide.

"Yeah, it should be close soon." Masira stated, "The weather has stabilized for a while, after all."

"Oh, he's right." Nami stated in surprise, "So this is Jaya's climate zone…"

"A spring island, huh?" Luffy stated with a grin as he lazed on the ship's figurehead.

"Feels nice and warm~" Chopper sighed, "What a lovely spring day. Even the seagulls look happy."

I looked out at the sea as I thought about how to deal with the Jaya situation. I know that Blackbeard is on this island, but what could I do with that knowledge? I mean, what can I even do? I've only got Observation Haki, which is pointless against him and he would insta-kill me within seconds with his darkness abilities.

And then there's Bellamy, that freaking hyena…

I could have them search for the South Bird in the evening instead of midnight… and then we'll be prepared for Bellamy when he come for Cricket. Would that change things, however…? And then, two thumps later, I was put out of my thoughts as I turned to face Chopper panicking over two dead seagulls. Ah, him.

"AGHH! They have been shot!" Chopper cried.

"Shot? But I didn't hear any close to gunshot!" Usopp exclaimed.

"Look! Bullets!" He pulled out the lead pellet from the dead bird's body, "Judging from the direction they were flying in, the shots fired in the direction we're sailing!"

"That would mean that it came from Jaya!" Masira cried in shock.

"Come on, now… we can't even see Jaya yet." Nami pointed out, "How can anyone shoot that far and at something as small as seagulls?"

"That might be one." I points out. I looked at the front of the boat, and gave out a double bird. A small mirage vision later, I dodges it with a tilt of my head as the bullet hits the mast behind me. "Yup. There's one."

"That must be one hell of a sniper!" Usopp cried in shock, "What kind of gun and eyesight he has?!"

"But not as good as you, Usopp." I tells him with a smirk, "And I know that for a fact!"

"…You really think so…?" He chuckles nervously.

* * *

After a few more minutes of sailing we made it to Jaya, docking at the harbor of Mocktown. It is as Oda drawn it out to be, a pirate haven the same quality as Port Royal. Wooden buildings all over with several parts of the roads and buildings semi-wrecked or half-finished.

"This looks like a nice place." Luffy stated cheerfully.

"Like hell it is!" Nami cried pointing at the fight happening just a few meters away, "What kind of town is this?!"

"This is Mocktown." Masira explained, "Largest lawless town this part of the Grand Line, if not the worst. Marines almost never come to this place, so it was greeted like a watering hole for pirates travelling this part of the sea."

"So it's a pirate haven, so to speak." Sanji pointed out.

"Is your leader h-h-here…?" Usopp asked worriedly.

"Oh, no, Boss couldn't even enter this place without getting shot at. I thought it would do you guys best to stock up here first." He explained, "Also, I need to wait for Shoujou and my crew to pick me up here. It would take roughly until noon, I reckon."

"So we got a few hours to kill, huh?" Zoro pointed out.

"Since we're here, why don't I show you guys around?" Masira asked with a smile, "I know a killer bar that serves the best alcohol on this island! It will be fun!"

"Oh! Fun time!" Luffy cheered as he leaped off the boat and together with the monkey man took off into the crowd.

"Wait up, Luffy!" Our swordsman quickly chases after them with Nami in tow.

"And… there they go…" I stated worriedly. Hopefully they don't go into any big trouble that would pin-point us out…

"Ms. Dragon, mind accompanying me a bit?" Robin asked me.

I shrugged as I nodded, the both of us leaving the boat and trailing into the town.

* * *

Following Robin, we visited several stores to buy her some clothes for her wardrobe, considering that she is currently using my outfit. I also decide to add into my own wardrobe as well, a few different style of pants and shirts as well as few variables in my swimwear. I have way too many girly clothes from Loguetown, plus I'm feeling a little gutsy today…

After our small shopping spree, we decided to wander about the town for a bit. I'm surprised at how Robin navigate this place with relative ease. Guess being on the run for all her life really gave her some experience dealing with the unruly kind.

"Hey, Ms. Dragon?"

I looked at her curiously, what does she want?

"Tell me the truth, how _do_ you know about Ohara?" She asked curiously, "That incident was a huge government incident that they no doubt covered up with lies, but you say you know the true incident, which should be impossible unless…"

I felt a small hand grabbing me by the neck under my swimsuit, "Are you one of the Ciper Pol's undercover agents?"

"…No, I'm not." I tells her, "Don't compare me to those Government monsters."

"Then explain how you get that information?" She demanded, "Or are you lying about the whole thing?"

"I would never lie about such a tragedy." I stated firmly. The loss of past knowledge they possesses, the loss of great minds, of great people, it is truly a tragedy for the world.

"Then explain! Now!"

"…I won't." I stared at her firmly, "Not until you are willing to put down that mask of yours and trust us with your life. Until that day comes, my secret stays with me."

"…" I felt her hold on my neck loosen as the arm dissipates into a burst of petals, "Very well. I can compromised with that."

"And you have to tell the crew about Ohara, the one and only truth." I added in.

Her rigid stance paused in the middle of the street, I waited patiently for an answer before she chuckles slightly, "Fufufu, you really one unreasonable woman." She walked in close to me, picked my chin up to her face, her eyelids half-closed in a seductive stare, "Almost makes me want to eat you up~"

"…" I pushed down the blush as much as I can. She then let go of my chin as we walked off down the street.

Not exactly the outcome I wanted, but I'll take it.

* * *

After some strolling we made it back to the ship with our new gear. What we are greeted with the usual noise with the crew as well as Masira's own ship along with a new one as well. This one is similar in motif but it has more of an orangutan than monkey. That must be Shoujou's ship, then…

"My, my, don't things seem awfully noisy here?" Robin asked.

"Ah! Welcome back, Robin-chwan, Rein-chwan~! Will you be eating now? Or will be you be taking a bath~?" Sanji cooed much to my dismay. God, he is terrible with these…

"Oh, you were out, Robin, Rein?" Luffy asked.

"Yes, to acquire some clothes." She stated gesturing to the small bags of cloths we have, "And I decided to ask Ms. Dragon here for a little date along the way."

"D-Date?!" I cried blushing.

"That's right! This is all your fault, Rein!" Nami shouted at me as we board the ship, "If you didn't ask the monkey dude for help, we wouldn't have come to this goddamn place! The moment I find out that Sky Island doesn't exist, I'm gutting you like a fish!"

"Um… what's her problem?" I asked Usopp confused about the whole thing.

"Just let her be for now…" He sighed, "He has been like this since she came back with Luffy and Zoro wounded like crazy."

"Wait, what?!" I turned to see the two people mentioned, they both with some Band-Aids on their faces. Oh my god, it's the hyena scene, isn't it…?

"Looks like you people attract trouble anywhere you go, huh?" Robin commented.

"Nami, you asked around for Sky Island, didn't you?" I asked tiredly. That's the only reason for this to happen.

"Oh, just… want some extra information." She explained sheepishly, "But seriously! Why didn't you two fight back!? You both could have totaled that guy within seconds!"

"You're the one that told us not to fight." Zoro stated tiredly.

"The circumstances are different then!"

"Look, just let it slide, alright…?" I tells her, "It already happen, and besides, it's not like it really matters, right?"

"…Hah… alright, you win…" Nami sighed.

"Oh, lady! You've returned!" Masira exclaimed from the deck of his ship, "Hey, Shoujou! They're all here! Let's head to the Boss's place!"

"Right." The orangutan-looking guy on the other ship nodded before starting to issue commands to his crew. "Follow us, we're heading to the eastern shores."

After a little checking here and there, we set sail after the two ships. A few minutes of sailing later, we reached to a different part of the island all together. Instead of the rowdy pirate town, we reach the more rural area, where there are more trees and grass. And at the destination, we reached Cricket's house on Jaya.

"Whoa!"

"Holy moly!"

I looked with amusement as two of the kiddie-trio all looked at the castle right in front of them with complete awe, "THAT'S his house?!" Luffy cried.

"Whoa! Maybe's he's like, SUPER rich or something?!" Usopp pointed out.

"Sadly, no." Masira stated.

"Huh?"

"That's just a show of the Boss's dreams." Shoujou agreed.

"AH! It's just a wooden board!" Luffy exclaimed from the shore, I let out a giggle at that exclamation.

"Only one half is an actual house, the other is just a veneer panel." Zoro pointed out.

"Yeah, he had that up when we first met too." The monkey man pointed out, "Tricked us the same way too."

"We never did figured out why he had that up." His brother added in.

"So, where is he?" Nami asked as we wander about on the property, "Where is this leader of yours. Because I don't see him anywhere around here."

"Huh, maybe he is still diving?" Shoujou wonders.

"Diving?"

"Boss always dive into the ocean from here." He explained, "This place is a steep drop into the ocean's floor, almost unnatural. So he thought if there is a City of Gold, it would be here."

"Hellooo?! Anyone home?!" Luffy asked as he nonchalantly enter the house.

"Wait, you're just barging in?!" Usopp cried.

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute, Straw Hat!" Masira cried, "Boss don't like people just entering his house like that!"

"Huh? A picture book?" Robin wonders as she picked up the old book lying on the tree stump, "[Norland the Liar]… It's a North Blue classic story. Why is it doing here?"

"Maybe the man like picture books?" I pointed out.

"Sounds like a great story to me!" Our sniper proclaimed.

"[Norland the Liar]?" Sanji perked up before realizing something, "Oh! Now I remember! The City of Gold! It was written in that book! I've read it all the time when I was a kid!"

"You know it, Mr. Cook?" Robin asked.

"But wait, isn't that book from the North Blue?" Nami asked, "Why would you have read it before?"

"Oh, I was born in the North Blue." He explained, "Did I not mention that before?"

"First I've heard about this." Usopp stated, "I thought you were from the East Blue like us."

"No, I was only raised in the East Blue." The blonde cook stated with a smile. Unluckily for him, I've had my Observation Haki on his aura this whole time. His aura is showing signs of what I assume is distress for a brief moment. He really dislike his own past a lot, huh?

"Oh, you found Boss's book." Masira stated as he walked towards us.

"Oh, so this belongs to your leader?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, it's the reason he started looking for the City of Gold to begin with." The monkey man stated, "The man in the story is his ancestor. And in it he stated he found a City of Gold. I do not know much, but that story has brought ruin to his family for generations to come. That's the reason he choose to search for the City of Gold."

"To clear his ancestor's name, right?" Sanji stated.

"Not exactly." Shoujou chimed in, "There's another reason he is doing this."

"Huh? What kind of-"

"AGGHHHHH!"

We all froze when we saw Luffy fell into the water. I quickly took off my shirt and dived into the waters after him. I manages to grab onto him and swim back up to the surface quickly before he nearly went too deep. They were right, this place is a deep drop to the ocean floor. I can't barely see the ocean floor when I dived in.

"Just what are you doing, Luffy?" I asked as we surfaced.

"T-There w-were *cough* bubbles from be*cough* below, so I leaned in for a closer look and this chestnut appeared." He explained while coughing, "But the chestnut is actually a guy… and he quickly pulled me down into the water…"

"BOSS!"

I looked at the shore just as Cricket fell over onto the ground. "Ah! Quick! Get him onto his bed!" Chopper exclaimed as I watch them carry him into the house.

* * *

After I pulled Luffy out of the water, he rushed into the house with the two monkeys outside sitting about worryingly. I know the reason for his condition, so I decide to wait outside to keep an eye out for Bellamy. Who know what I changed accidentally, so if Bellamy came here early, I'll be ready.

A few moments of shouting later, I heard the door open and Cricket exiting the house with a smile on his face.

"Boss! Are you okay now?!" Masira asked worriedly.

"Never felt better." He grins, "Now then, Masira, Shoujou, you guys know they are heading for a Sky Island, right?"

"Oh, yeah." The monkey man stated, "I thought you would have an idea on how to get there."

"Well, if it's a how, then there is one way." Shoujou stated.

"Huh? You mean…?" The monkey man looked at his brother worried, "But if they tried that way, they will die for sure!"

"Well then." Their leader smirked, "Why don't we lend them a hand in this?"

"Of course!" Masira declared proudly, "They did help me with my salvaging work, after all!"

"If that's the case, I'll lend a hand or two." Shoujou stated.

"Then it's settled." Cricket looked over to the house before calling out, "Okay, you brats! Come on here! There are somethings I want to let you guys know first!"

* * *

"Alright, I'll tell you everything I know about the Sky Island." Cricket stated as we all sat about on the stump looking at him with expectations high, Zoro just sleeping in the background while I remain in high alert around us, "But be forewarned, all I know aren't concrete facts so it's up to you guys to believe it or not."

"Okay, I believe you."

"Too fast!" Usopp snapped at our captain.

"There's a phenomenon that occurs around the seas of this region." He explained, "When day suddenly turns to night."

"Ah! There is! That one is true for sure, right?!" Luffy pointed out.

"Yeah, not only did it suddenly become night, but monsters appeared too!" The sniper cried.

"Ah, right. The giant shadows." Cricket muttered, "There's a theory to where they come from, but let's leave that aside for now. In any case, the suddenly occurring 'night' is actually the shadow of an extremely dense, towering cloud."

"Oh, you mean a cumulonimbus?" Nami pointed out, "But that kind of darkness wasn't something that could be form under some thick clouds…"

"Yeah, don't be stupid, mister!" Luffy stated, "If there's a lot of cloud in the sky, it is just cloudy!"

"Yeah, just cloudy." The sniper agreed.

"Just cloudy!" Chopper agreeing as well.

"Shut up and listen!" He shouted at us before continuing, "[Emperonimbus], there's a type of cloud by that name. They stack up high into the sky but don't give rise to rain or currents. And when those clouds appeared in the sky, they block out even sunlight, changing day to night. One theory states that the emperonimbus clouds have been drifting in the sky for thousands, even tens of thousands of years all the while never changing, causing some to nicknamed it a 'fossil cloud'."

"A-A cloud that doesn't let out any rain or currents no matter how high it piles up?!" Nami cried, "That should be impossible!"

"You're free to believe it or not." Cricket tells her, "I'm not telling you these to convince you or anything."

"Ah! So it's a mystery cloud!" Luffy affirms.

"In a way, I suppose. People hasn't found out why it is like it is yet, after all."

"Wow, Luffy! You're amazing!" Chopper stated in awe.

"Chopper, he says that to anything he doesn't understand." I pointed out.

"Now listen up." He tells us, "If the Sky Island really does exist, then it could only possibly exist in that cloud!"

"Okay, got it! Let's go the top of that cloud!" Luffy declared.

"Wait! Wait! Luffy, let him finish first!" I tells him.

"Okay, now this is the crucial part." Cricket tells us ominously, "Let me warn you all, you'll have to risk your lives for it."

"R-Risk our l-l-lives…?!" Usopp stutter in fear.

"Knock-Up Stream." He states out, "If you can ride that, it'll take you up into the sky, understand?"

"WHAT?! You mean that stream that knocks ships up into the air?!" Nami cried.

"Oh! So we just have to get ourselves blasted up into the clouds!" Luffy laughed.

"But at Mocktown, I heard that's how the ships come crashing down from the sky." She pointed out.

"Normally, yes, that would be the case." He tells her, "The key point in this is timing. Of course, it would sound rather simple when I say you'll be 'riding the stream', but it sure as hell ain't going to be some picnic, that's for sure. After all, Knock-Up Stream is labeled as a natural disaster. It is something normal sailors desperately avoids."

"Natural d-disaster…?" The sniper gaped in horror.

"Just how does a stream even travel up into the air anyways?" Nami asked, "I've never heard of such a thing until recently…!"

"Even the workings behind that monster of a stream aren't beyond the realms of logic. Though it is due to no one being idiotic enough to go and confirm the facts." Cricket explained, "The main theory goes like this:

"Deep below the ocean floor, there's a large cave, to which low-temperature water flows inside. The steam pressure caused by the intense geothermal heat builds and builds up, until a limit is reached and it comes exploding out. An explosion of such scale that it knocks up a volume of water so large as to make it looks like an ocean current heading straight into the sky. For about a minute, the ocean water continues to jet up into the sky."

"The explosion locations change every time, but it happens about 5 times a month."

"The water shoots up for a full minute?! Just how big is this explosion?!" Nami asked worriedly.

"So… we're going to get blasted to bits…?" Usopp asked worriedly, shaking like a leaf.

"Despite saying all of that…" Cricket added on grimly, "Trying to accurately describe one of nature's greatest phenomenon with logic and reason alone is pure folly."

"T-Then… if Sky Island isn't there at the top of the Knock-Up Stream, which only happens 5 times in a month each at different locations…"

"Yes, it'd be all for naught." The old man stated, "Your ship would fail to catch up to anything up in the sky and come crashing down to a watery grave for all of your crew. Also, even with the emperonimbus located at the right spot, if it turns out the Sky Island doesn't exist, then again, the end results would still be your deaths."

Usopp have his mouth gaping opened in terror, before turning to Luffy while sweating buckets, "A-Alright! We'll just give up on the Sky Island then! Hahaha… what a shame, Luffy. But this is just impossible. Basically, this boils down to only the luckiest of the luckiest of the luckiest of the luckiest person to actually be able to even go up there!"

"It'll be fine!" Our captain laughed, "Let's go!"

"It'll be fine…? There you go again, making light of danger without even a shred of proof…" He sobbed as he points at our ship, "Just look at poor Merry… Look how battered and beaten she is! There's no way she could stand up to one of nature's greatest calamity in her current state."

"It would be impossible for your ship, even if she's brand new." Cricket pointed out, "Considering the speed, weight, and the strength, that ship of yours would be blasted into bits and pieces at the same time as the exploding stream."

"Making fun of Merry, are you?!" Usopp growls at him before sighing tiredly, "But there…see? Even the expert says it's impossible."

"But don't worry about that point at least." He added on, "Masira and Shoujou can help guarantee your ship will stay intact on the ride up. They would give it the needed repairs and strengthening reinforcements."

"Hell yeah, we can!" The two monkey brothers proclaimed with gusto, "Just leave it to us!"

"Thanks a bunch!" Luffy thanks them.

"Oh! Can you guys reinforce the keel thicker and tougher?" I asked them. If I recall correctly, it was around this time where the Going Merry gets irreversibly damaged to its keel, pretty giving it the death sentence. If I can just prevent that from happening…

"Oh sure! Whatever you need!"

"Both of you, wait a minute here!" Nami tell us, "We can only stay one more day on this island. If we stay any longer, the Log Pose will finish recording this island and point to the next one!"

"That's right! That's right! There's no way we can make it in time!" Usopp concluded, "Who knows when the next time a Knock-Up Stream and an emperornimbus cloud will be located at the same place?! It might be days, weeks, months, even years before that happen!"

"It should happen around tomorrow at noon." Cricket tells him.

"WHAT?! So we CAN make it!?"

"What? If you don't wanna go, then don't." He stated out.

I notices Usopp glaring at him with contempt before pointing at him accusingly, "Y-You're lying, aren't you?! This is way too suspicious! We've only met for the first time today, and yet you're being so nice to us?!"

"Usopp!"

"You stay quiet, Luffy!" He tells our captain angrily, "It just so happens that the only way into the Sky Island will happen _tomorrow_?! And you're happy to get our ship fixed up and ready to go?! This is _way_ too good to be true! Just what are you plotting?! You're a descendent of Norland the Liar, right?! How can we even trust you?!"

"Usopp, that's enough!" I screamed at him angrily, the sniper looking at me with shock in his eyes, "Calling someone trying to help us a liar, and using their descendent as reference?! That's uncalled for! There are lines that can't be crossed!"

Everyone all remained silent as we watch the tension between us three, I glaring at our sniper with fury before sitting back down with a huff.

"…When 'night' is spotted at daytime in Masira's turf, the emperornimbus cloud can be seen in the skies south from here." Cricket explains to him, "And if going by the estimate of a Knock-Up Stream happening 5 times a month, there should be another one happening tomorrow, probably around south from here too. I can't say with a 100 percent certainty, but there is a real good chance for those two events to happen together at the same place tomorrow."

"But above all, I'm just happy meeting fools like you." Usopp remained frozen as the two of them stare off with each other, the old veteran treasure hunter gave a grin at him. "You guys can stay the night. Friends help each other out, right?"

"…?!"

Usopp flinched in shock at the revelation, before dropping on his knees in shame, "…Sorry for… saying stuff like that…"

"It is fine." The old man smirked, "You're just looking out for your comrades and yourself, right? No one wants to die, after all."

"Hey guys!" Masira called out from the house, "The food's ready! We got some real special dishes tonight!"

"This guy's cooking skills left me all in jitters!" Shoujou pointed out.

"Told you I'm a first-rate chef, didn't I?" Sanji tells them.

"All right! Let's have dinner, shall we?" Cricket stated with a smile.

"Ah! Wait a moment!" I called out to them, "Before that, shouldn't there be something more important to do first?"

"Hm? What's more important than food?" Luffy asked.

"Well, the Knock-Up Stream is south from here, right?" I pointed out.

"Yeah, so?" Cricket asked, before realizing, "Oh, that's right! Can't believe I've forgotten about that!"

"Huh? About what?" Usopp asked.

"The Knock-Up Stream is natural phenomenon, remember? So the Log Pose is useless." He pointed out, "Not only that, it is on this sea, the Grand Line, where normal compasses are useless too. So trying to find the proper direction is pretty much impossible without an assistance."

"An assistance? What kind?" Nami asked curiously.

"On this island, there lives a species of birds known as the South Bird. As their name implies, they have a strong biological compass as accurate as a normal compass in any of the Blues. No matter where they are, they always points south and only south."

"Ah! So if we catch one of these birds…" She concluded.

"Right! Time to catch us some bird!" Luffy declared as he rushed into the forest.

"Ah wait, Luffy!" Usopp chases after him with a net he pulled out of nowhere.

"I'm coming too!" Chopper declared as he rushes after them.

"…Well, they are gone…" I stated with a sigh.

"What should we do in the mean time?" Sanji asked, "I mean, the food is going to get cold if they don't hurry back…"

"Someone got to go make sure they don't do anything stupid…" Nami pointed out.

"Robin, please?" I asked her, "With your abilities, you'll be able to get the bird with ease."

"…Fine." She smiled before leaning in with half-lidded eyes, "But I want a kiss in return, okay~?"

"K-K-Kiss?!"

"…I kid." She giggled before walking into the forest after the three.

"Those birds have a unique call, so they should be easy to find!" Masira tell her.

"I understand."

"…I really… can't handle her sometimes…" I sighed tiredly. Robin was never this flirty in the anime, or in the manga. This is completely new territory for me.

* * *

We all started our party once the four of them came back with a South Bird at hand tied up by some ropes. Everyone all went all cherry as we eat up the delicious dishes Sanji cooked up, even a few Alabastan cuisines in there as well.

As everyone are partying and happy a jolly good time, I decided to sit in a corner next to Robin, who is reading up on Norland's logbook. As soon as she flipped to a certain page, Cricket took interest and walked up to her.

"[I saw gold in the right eye of the skull]." He stated.

"Gold?!"

"Caught your interest, I see…" I muttered tiredly.

"That tear-stained entry was the last thing Norland wrote in his journal." The old man tell us as he chugged down on a bottle of alcohol, "He was executed later that day. Even after coming to Jaya, I have no idea what he meant in that line. Right eye of the skull? Was that the name of the fabled city? Or was it just some cryptic message about his impending death? The blank pages afterwards don't help at all with unravelling the mystery behind that line."

"BUT! That's why we dive!" He declared bombastically, "To see the city of dreams lying on the ocean floor!"

"That's right! UKIKIKI!" Masira cheered.

"Robin, mind letting me take a read?" I asked her. She gave me a plastic smile before handing me the book. I flipped through the pages as I read the entries in them. They are all pretty well-written with great details in them, describing with quite accurate explanations and somewhat simple vocabulary. They are log entries, simple yet compact. I could learn a time or two from this.

Then I encountered an entry in there. "Huh? [We just survived another disaster on this crazy ocean. The Knock-Up Stream sure is something to be at awe at. If Ryujin didn't tell us about it, we would have been blown to bits. Getting him as a guide is truly worth every beri. We would have died several times over without his help.]." Ryujin…? Who's that? He wasn't mentioned in the manga before…

"A guide?" Robin wonders, "I didn't know there are people like that back then…"

"This Ryujin character was mentioned several times in that journal." Robin explained, "From the start of his voyage till the part about Jaya, he was there. A guide of this treacherous sea, one with knowledge of this ocean's dangers and blessings."

"What I would give for such a person on our crew…" Usopp sighed, "It would have made our journey so much easier."

"I don't want one!" Luffy declared, "No spoilers on our adventure!"

"Yeah, yeah, we know…" Zoro sighed.

"The day we arrived at Jaya! May 21, 1122!"

"NORLAND!"

"Okay, they are completely drunk off their asses now…" I state out as I watch the three leaders of the Saruyama Alliance shouting their lungs out.

"Upon arriving at the island, we were immediately greeted with a cry from the most unusual bird from the forest; and a loud bell-ring. The sound of this enormous golden bell reverberated through the entire island, as if proclaiming the former glory of its ancient city. When reminded of the civilizations that have risen and fallen throughout the ages across this vast sea, we, who barely live a few decades at most yet act as if we know all there is to this world, were too awestruck to utter even a single word. And so, we simply stood there, silently listening to the bell ringing…"

"What a poet, that Norland!" Cricket proclaimed.

"Amazing! A giant bell made from gold!" Nami stated in awe, and not from greed for once.

"Ha! So you do like Norland after all, don'cha, mister?!" Usopp pointed out with a cheer.

"Here! Take a look at this!"

Cricket produced a couple of small golden token-like objects from his shelves for us to see. I got to say, they sure look nice even after four hundred years in the ocean.

"Whoa! It's the golden bell!" Nami cried in surprise with beri-signs shining from her eyes.

"Umm… what's so enormous about this?" Usopp asked confused.

"Haha, this isn't the actual golden bell." He tell the sniper, "This is just a gold ingot in the shape of a bell. I found three of these at the bottom of the ocean here!"

"Oh, so the City of Gold does exist!" Luffy concluded.

"Well, this isn't solid enough proof for that." Shoujou explained, "It is not too hard to find this much gold in any old ruins."

"Still, this is enough proof that a civilization once existed here in these parts." Robin stated, "An ingot is a weight used to measure precious metals after all. Only people that have some sort of civilization use them."

"Ah! That's right, show them that, Masira."

"Yup."

"Whoa, there's more?!" Usopp stated in surprise.

The monkey man takes out a bundle of cloth from one of the shelves and unfurled them to show them a small golden statue of the South Bird.

"This is the last one." Cricket stated, "It may not be much for ten years of diving, but…"

"Oh, it's the South Bird!" Luffy pointed out, I glancing at the captured bird at the corner and then compared the two. One to one, almost identical! Whoever made this sure know their craft!

"South Bird, and a bell…" Sanji stated, "So these are the two symbols of Jaya's ancient civilization, huh…?"

"I don't know for sure, but I think this was only a part of a larger piece…" The old man pointed out.

"But still, this sure is something, mister!" Usopp stated in awe, "To think that an ancient city filled with gold was on this island long time ago…"

"I'm sure you'll find that city for sure, Diamond-head old man!" Luffy stated.

"Hmph, maybe I will…"

"HAHAHAHA! Come on out, Montblanc Cricket!"

We all stopped partying when we heard an obnoxious voice shouting from outside. I sighed as I gripped my sheath tightly, ready to deal with him.

Bellamy the Hyena has arrived.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Done! Hope you are all prepared for Sky Island soon! I have a lot of things planned for that arc. So yes, Bellamy does come to Cricket as usual, but this time, we have the whole Straw Hat crew to counter him.**

 **And yeah, this idea does come from THAT fic, but not completely based on it. You'll see!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	23. Ch 23:A Hyena?

**Chapter 23: A Hyena? Fuck that, we'll going to the sky!**

We all exited the small cabin and what await us outside is none other than that freaking Bellamy. His cocky smile with his attire really sell him out as a traditional pirate that is way over his own head. He must be proud to have that high of a bounty, but he does not know the truth, that Luffy's bounty is WAY higher than his now.

"Are you the man named Montblanc Cricket?" Bellamy smirked.

"What's it to you?" Cricket asked annoyed.

"I was in town when I heard a really interesting rumor." He grins with his tongue sticking out, "That you're the idiotic dreamer that is searching the ocean for some 'City of Gold'."

I put my hand on Luffy's shoulder as I held him in place, "Not yet, Luffy…"

"Oh? What's this?! If it isn't the straw hat dreamer from this morning!" The hyena laughed his head off, "So you believe this old coot's fairy tales?! What am I saying, of course you do! You and he are the same species of idiots that plagued our generations with naïve dreams of grandeur!"

"Just tell me what you want." Cricket demanded, his hand already going for his pistol.

"Hand it over, the gold you found!"

"Whoa there, tough guy." Shoujou intoned as the two primate brothers walked up with gritted teeth, "You don't want to make us mad now."

"You think you can just barge into our turf in the middle of the night and demand our gold?" Masira pointed out cracking his knuckles, "Beat it! That gold ain't yours to take!"

"Yeah! The old man risk his life to find those things!" Usopp shouted in bravado.

"You're not touching the Diamond-head old man's gold!" Luffy chimed in.

"HAHAHA! What is this? The idiotic guards thinks they are big now?" Bellamy laughed, "You know, pirate Cricket, I heard about the touching story of your family and shed some tears. Taking away someone else hard-earned treasure has, well, a really distinct flavor to it, y'know?"

"This no good piece of shit…" Sanji growled as he stood ready. Zoro too get ready to draw his sword.

"Wait!" I shouted to them, before walking passed the two brothers and stand ready in front of them, "Let me handle this."

"R-Rein-chan…?"

"H-Hey, Lady!" Cricket cried.

"Wait a minute, Rein!" Nami cried, "You have no idea what he is capable of! He has a bounty higher than yours, and even Luffy's! You can't hope to match him!"

"Even so, allow me this honor." I grins, "It wouldn't be good for the strongest of us to deal with a lackluster man like him." I failed in stopping Mr. 2, letting him get away. Even if it doesn't mean anything to anyone in the crew, I want to at least atone for that mistake… not that I'll say it out loud…

"Oh? That girl has a bounty?" Bellamy asked his crew, his right-hand man, Sarkies if I recalled properly, checked a roll of bounties before chuckling.

"Oh, she has." He smirked, "Dragon Princess Rein, 15 million."

"Ha! 15 million?! That's pathetic!" The captain laughed, "It's not even worth fighting! Someone just deal with her for me, and make it quick."

"What? Too scared to fight a woman?" I chuckled as I drew my sword, "Hyena is definitely accurate for you. You only dared to handle the leftovers from stronger predators with no guts to hunt on your own. I was right to step up, you're not even worth my captain's or the first mate's attention at all."

"…You know what? This would make a great demonstration." Bellamy grins as he took off his coat, "To show what happens to those who cross me."

"HAHAHA! Show her, Bellamy!" Sarkies laughed, "Prove that dreaming woman how stupid she is for challenging us!"

"One hit." The captain boasted as he bends his knees, his shins turning into springs, "That's all I need."

"He's a Devil Fruit user?!" Usopp cried.

"Rein! Look out!" Nami cried.

"Spring Sniper!" Bellamy shot towards me at blinding speed that the naked eye has trouble keeping track. But for me, I knew how he's going to strike. And with the additional Observation Haki, I know exactly how to counter and defeat him in one fell swoop.

The very moment he comes close to me to strike a punch, I turns my body so that he misses me completely before twisting my blade to its blunt end and swings down hard. The result is instantaneous, my blade strike his head hard which then slams him into the ground hard enough to crack it. I looked down at my victim, Bellamy completely unconscious with my blade's length embedded on his skull.

Silence filled the air as everyone all looked at me with stunned surprise or complete horror.

"Whoa, that lady is good…" Masira stated out.

"She is took him out with ease…" Cricket pointed out in shock.

"One hit, alright…" Zoro stated with a smirk, "She definitely has grown quite a bit from Alabasta."

"Amazing, Rein-chwan~!" Sanji cooed to me.

"…H-Hey, B-Bellamy…" Sarkies stuttered as he stepped forward, "C-Come on now, stop messing around… You're just playing dead, right…?"

"Nope, he's down." I tell him, poking his side with my feet, "Completely out of it."

"Q-Quit it, Bellamy!" He shouted at his captain, "Stop acting stupid and put on the usual show for us! Aren't you some big-shot rookie worth 55 million?! You can't lose to a girl like this!"

"Well, he just did!" I smirked, pointing my sword at him, "You want a demonstration, tough guy?"

"Y-You…! YOU BITCH!" He charged at me with his large knife drawn, only for him to get punched out of the way by one of Luffy's rubber punches.

"Come on, captain." I groaned as I turned to him sheathing my sword, "Told you he isn't worth your time. At least let me handle it."

"Nah, they pissed me off." He stated nonchalantly.

"T-These guys… they aren't normal…" One of the crew stated in horror.

"If that lady is one of the weakest ones… I'm scared of what their captain can do!" Another pointed out.

"R-RUN!"

Every single member of the Bellamy pirates all took off towards their ship, a few members dragging their defeated leaders back with them. We all watch as their ship sailed away before I let out a sigh of relief. Well, manages to get rid of that issue.

"D-Damn, Rein, you've become ridiculously strong…" Usopp pointed out.

"You go girl!" Nami cheered, "That feel so good on so many levels!"

"Color me impressed, Ms. Dragon." Robin stated, "I wasn't expecting that level of strength from someone of your status. Your bounty is clearly outdated for the current you."

"HAHAHAHA! Never in my life has I seen such a woman!" Cricket laughed, "One with the balls and the strength to back up your boasts! Not since the Pirate Empress herself!"

"Thank you, thank you, you are all too kind." I bowed to them with a laugh.

"This generation's rookies sure are crazy in their own ways, huh…?" Shoujou pointed out.

"That is true!" Masira added on with a laugh.

"But, why did you step up for us?" Cricket asked us, "This isn't exactly your battle."

"Yes it is." I smirked, "Those idiots make fun of our captain's dreams. As his loyal member, I would not stand by it unchallenged."

"Yeah, and they make fun of your dreams too." Luffy pointed out, "So I don't like them."

"…" I can feel Cricket gaze on us before he returns back to the house.

* * *

After that little incident out of the way, we all continued with our work in fixing up the Going Merry. Well, it's mostly the monkey brothers that is doing most of the work, but still, by morning the Going Merry is fixed and geared up for flight.

Or at least… That's what they said it would be…

What I'm looking at right now is definitely based on birds, but I feel it just going to crash down the moment we even lift off the ocean's surface…

"I feel uneasy just looking at it…" Nami pointed out.

"Yeah…" Zoro agreed for once, "A pigeon will be a better fit than a rooster."

"Not the point here, you blockhead!" She shouted at him.

"A-Anyway, shouldn't we be going right now?!" I tell them, "I mean, I get we're a bit early but still…"

"That's actually a good idea." Cricket pointed out, "The skies doesn't look like it would come, but you never know when Mother Nature decides to throw a wrench into our plans."

"Alright! Everyone, get ready to set sail!" Luffy commanded.

"AYE-AYE, SIR!"

"Wait! We're sailing first, right?!" Masira interjected.

"Listen to our orders! We're your captains here!" Shoujou exclaimed.

We all got ready to sail off, pulling up the anchor and all that as the two monkey pirate ships took off first. Soon enough, we prepared to let loose the sails.

"KID!" Cricket called out to us, "This is good-bye for you and me for now! But, there's one thing I know for certain at least! Whether it's the City of Goldor Sky Island, there's hasn't been a single person who have proven they don't exist! People may call us fools, laugh at us for chasing such fantasy. But so what?!"

"Isn't because it is fantasy, that makes it romantic?!"

"…Romantic, huh…?" Luffy smirked.

"Thanks for last night, kid." The old man laughed, "Now, don't go falling out of the sky, now."

"SHISHISHI~!"

We all waved our goodbyes as we set sail into the open oceans.

* * *

"Listen up!" Shoujou called out, "We set off a little early, so we'll reach our destination probably before 1100. Even so, like the boss said, the Knock-Up Stream changes locations every time; so we'll have to quickly search for its exact location as soon as we arrive there."

"We'll be counting on you!" I called out to them.

"Of course!" Masira shouted.

"Hey! Hey! Rein, look at this!" I hear Luffy called out as I turned to see him twisting the South Bird's head a bit, before it rotates back to it default southward point, "It turns back around! Ain't that funny?!"

"That sure is one weird bird…" Usopp pointed out.

"Right?! It really can't face any other direction than south! It's like a compass!" Our captain laughed.

"JYOO! JYOO!"

"Let's not make fun of our avian compass now." I tell him, "If we didn't get him, we'll be drifting the seas aimlessly with no way of finding that current. Then we won't be able to reach the Sky Island."

"JYOO! JYOO! JYOO!"

"What did he say?" Usopp asked our doctor.

"Um… 'That young lady knows what she is talking about. You should be grateful that I'm helping you ruffians at all.' He said."

"Aren't you a little cocky there, you shitty bird?" Sanji growled as he stomped up to it, "Want to become stock of me? I know several recipes for wild avians, you know!"

"Calm down, Sanji…" Our sniper tells him worriedly.

"Aren't you guys a little too relaxed?" Shoujou pointed out.

"Well, we left a little early, right?" Luffy pointed out, "So it's fine! I mean, no point in stressing over something for the next few hours or so, right?"

"He has a point." Masira stated, "No point staying nervous for the next few hours."

"Okay then…" His brother agreed, "Alright, boys! Just put in half your spirit and sail on."

"Aye… ayyeeee…"

"Uo… hhooooooo…"

"What a… nice weather… we got…"

"Is this going to be fine…?" Zoro asked worriedly as most of the people there just relaxed.

I looked at him with a shrug before leaning on the mast to take a small nap. After what happened last night exhausted me out…

…

"BOSS! This is bad!"

I woke up to a sudden cry from the monkeys, I mostly ignored the chatter they are going on about as I notices the large blackness under this enormous cloud in the horizon. That is a huge ass cloud! How did I missed that last time?!

"What's going on?!" Sanji asked panicky from the kitchen, his pans still cooking our lunch.

"The emperornimbus clouds are here much sooner than we expected!" Nami tells us, "And we still don't know where the Knock-Up Stream will be!"

"Ah!? Then we may have screw ourselves over from slacking off?!" Usopp cried.

"No, we might still make it!" I corrected him.

"Echo detected!" One of the monkeys informed his boss, "Large ocean currents at 12 o'clock!"

"Unidentified large animal at 9 o'clock! Most likely a Sea King!" Another pointed out.

"Waves crashing against the ocean currents detected at 10 o'clock! Likely to be a large whirlpool!" The last one declared.

"There!" Masira shouted, "Turn the ship for 10 o'clock! That whirlpool is our sign! We have to catch up to it!"

"You heard him!" Nami called out to us, "Turn to 10 o'clock!"

"A-Aye-aye!"

We all ran about trying to move the sails towards the direction, I pulling the whipstaff as hard as I can to steer the vessel. And then without notice, the whole ship rocked about extremely badly, "The waves got huge all of the sudden!" Usopp cried.

"It's the tremor before the blast!" Masira tell us, "Be careful!"

"Ms. Navigator!" Robin called out to her, "Where's the Log Pose pointing?!"

"Where…?" Nami looked down at the Log Pose before following the needle, "Up… It's pointing straight up!"

"Into the clouds…?!" Usopp pointed out, "T-Then…! Is Sky Island really…?!"

"The winds are perfect!" Shoujou pointed out, "They're directing the emperornimbus to right above the whirlpool's eye!"

"Whirlpool? Where? I don't see any whirlpools!" Nami cried.

"Looks like we guessed right this time bro!" Masira stated.

"And the blast is just the right size too!" Shoujou added on.

"Can we make it?!" Luffy asked them.

"Yeah! You should!" Masira tells us as a rope is stuck onto the goat/rooster head of our boat, "I'll take you all to the whirlpool!"

"Huh?! A-And then what…?"

"Just follow the currents all the way to the center without resisting!"

"T-T-T-To the CENTER?!" Usopp shrieked in horror.

"W-WAIT! I didn't hear anything about going to the center of a giant whirlpool!" Nami cried.

"I-It's an enormous current that goes up into the sky for a full minute, right…?" I shakily pointed out to them clutching the whipstaff tightly as I could, "T-The water has to come from somewhere, r-right?"

"Did you know about this?!" Usopp shouted at me as the sky turns dark, "No, you definitely know about this, didn't you?!"

"N-Not really!" I cried, "This part isn't that interesting to me so I forgotten most of it! I didn't expect a whirlpool this size!"

"Ah! A Sea King!" Chopper pointed out in fright as we looked out into the surging waves from the enormous currents that are dragging us, where a large Sea King ten times the size of one of the monkey brothers' galleons is sucked into the whirlpool without much of a struggle.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…Actually, let's not go to the island, okay, captain-"

"Alright then, the rest is up to you now!"

"Okay!" Luffy called out to our guides who are in a far and safe distance, "Thanks for getting us here!"

"GAHH! You got to be kidding me!" Usopp cried.

"W-WAIT A MINUTE, LUFFY!" I shouted at him, "L-Let's head back now! It's still not too late!"

"Why? Adventure await us, right?" He pointed out with a smile.

"I like safe, non-life-threatening adventures!" I cried out, "Not 0 or 100 dangerous gambles! B-Besides, t-there are other interesting islands out there, right?!"

"S-She's right, Luffy!" Usopp chimed in, "B-Besides, the Sky Island is just a fantasy among fantasies!"

"A fantasy among fantasies…? Oh, you're right."

"Exactly, Luffy!" Nami pointed out with a hopeful smile, "I think it's impossible too-"

"An adventure on a fantasy-island among fantasies?! We'd regret it for the rest of our lives if we gave this chance up!"

"THAT'S WHAT YOU UNDERSTOOD OUT OF ALL WE SAID?!" I shouted at him in horror.

"Hey, you guys." Zoro called to us, "While you were making a futile last-ditch attempt to dissuade our captain…" He pointed out to the waters as the ship suddenly seems to soar into the air, "The whirlpool swallowed us."

"GAAAHHHHHHH!"

"NO WAY!" I screamed grabbing onto the mast in fear.

"Nami-swan! Leap into my arms~!" Sanji cooed at her.

"WE'RE FALLING!" Usopp screamed as we braced for the disaster that is going to unfold on us.

Only to land safely onto calm waters with a splash.

"…Huh?"

"We're… not dead…?" I asked worriedly still having my tight grip on the shabbily fixed mast.

"What happened?" Sanji wonders, "Why did it just disappear?"

"There's no way such a gigantic whirlpool just straight up vanish into thin air!" Usopp pointed out.

"No…! It's starting!" Nami cried out, "The whirlpool's already been negated at the ocean floor! The Knock-Up Stream is coming!"

"CRAP! Everyone, get ready to-"

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!"

I was cut off on my comment when an extremely familiar and chilling voice called out to us from the distance. I looked out and found what I was afraid of. That three-headed skull, that dumb raft-looking ship… Not to mention the voice and that laugh…

"ZEHAHAHAHA! I caught up to you at last, Straw Hat Luffy!"

Marshall D. 'Blackbeard' Teach… Captain of the Blackbeard Pirates, user of the Dark-Dark Fruit, and the man who is going to be responsible for the War of the Best. Even at this distance, his aura is definitely extremely noticeable.

And chillingly, it is almost the same type of aura as Luffy's…

"Who are they?" Sanji asked.

"Ah! Those guys from Mocktown!" Nami pointed out.

"I've come for that 100 million beri head of yours!" He shouted out, "Say your prayers!"

"100 million? What are you talking about?!" Luffy called back.

"Ah, so you really didn't know, did you?" Teach laughed, "There's now a 100 million beri bounty posted for your head! And as for your friends, Pirate Hunter Zoro of 60 million beri bounty, and Dragon Princess Rein of 57 million!"

I'm worth 57 million?! It increased at least five times?! WHAT KIND OF CALCULATION THE MARINES HAVE?! All I did was defeat that Mr. 6 guy! He can't be that dangerous, can he?!

"Ah! He's right!" Usopp stated checking through his binoculars, "Zoro! There's a bounty on your head now!"

"Wait! What about me?" Sanji asked hopefully, "There's one for me too, right?"

"Nope."

"Come on! Look closer! There got to be!"

"Still nope, no bounty for you."

"…Ah! That's right! The Alabasta incident must have raised the bounties!" Nami realized, "But to reach 100 million…"

"I'm more surprised!" I screamed in fright, "I didn't do jack-shit and my bounty went up like crazy! How does that work?!"

"Come on! Be happy!" Luffy cheered, "Your bounty went up! That's something to be proud of!"

"I'm kind of disappointed at 60 million though…" Zoro stated with a grin.

"H-Hey guys! Don't get distracted now!" Shoujou called out to us, "It's coming now! The Knock-Up Stream!"

"Ah! That's right!" I called out as I grabbed onto the mast again, "Everyone, grab onto something and hold on tight! Things are about to get crazy! And not the best kind!" I looked at Robin just calmly holding onto the mast next to me, "And why are you so relaxed?!"

In the next couple of seconds, I felt the sea pushing from below before a loud boom can be heard as the sea just turns sideways. I nearly lost my grip as gravity suddenly changed angles on me. I felt the wind blowing behind me, or below me if I'm being specific, as the ship is somewhat riding on the large crazy current that is the Knock-Up Stream.

Calling it a nature disaster is right, for there are nothing else is suitable for something of this caliber. It's like watching a POV of a tsunami crashing onto you, but instead of from the top, it starts at the bottom and pushes up hard.

"W-WHAT'S GOING ON?!" Usopp cried.

"Isn't it obvious?!" I called out with a slight fear and a little exhilaration, "We're riding on a nature disaster current!"

"WOOHOO! This is awesome!" Luffy cheered, "Straight up to the sky! Go, Merry, GO!"

"Wait a second…! I don't think this is as good as it seems to be…" Sanji pointed out.

"Why? What is it?" Usopp asked.

"The entire ship is beginning to float off the water stream!"

"WHAT?!"

"At this rate, we're going to get knocked off the stream and fall back down into the sea below!" He exclaimed in fear.

"Oh, god, we're going to die!" I screamed. Not like this! Not like this!

"Ah! What's that?!"

We all turned to where Chopper is pointing to see the Sea King that was sucked into the whirlpool falling down from the stream roaring before disappearing into the waters below us. Soon after, several other debris is falling down as well as I felt the ship slowly lifting off the current.

"It's only a matter of time until THAT happens to us too!" Sanji pointed out.

"But we're only flying up right now from the impact of the blast!" Zoro stated, "It's not like we can fly the rest of the way!"

"Then what do we do?!" Usopp cried, "At this rate, we'll really crash back down into the sea and die!"

"EH?! We're going to die?!" Chopper cried out in fear.

"Lower the sails!"

We all turned to Nami with confusion on our faces, "WHAT?!"

"This is still the ocean!" She exclaims, "It is not some separate stream of water! What we're riding up on right now is an ocean current! And the blast created by the heat and steam from the ocean floor has given rise to an updraft!"

"And as long we're dealing with the seas and winds, I can navigate through them! Did you forget who the navigator of this ship is?!"

"You are, Nami-swan~!" Sanji cooed.

"Alright, guys! Do as Nami says!" Luffy commanded.

"Aye-aye!"

We got to work following Nami's instructions as we try our best to pull about the sails despite our current situation. I manages to get back to the whipstaff and pulled the rudder to her desired position. I braced myself as I can feel the ship leaving the stream little by little.

Until…

"WE'RE FLYING!"

I stared out at our current situation in awe as it is as Luffy states. We are indeed flying up the stream! I could only held onto the railings as we sped up the stream through the air.

"Hell yeah! We're really flying into the skies now!" Our captain cheered.

"I-Is this for real?!" Usopp cried in shock.

"It is!" I laughed, "We might be the world's first flying pirates!" I paused as I recalled a certain golden-haired pirate admiral, "Actually, made that the second…"

"Nami-swan~! You are amazing~!" Sanji cooed.

"As long as I can grasp the winds and currents, we can sail anywhere!" Nami declared with pride.

"Hey! Are we going to arrive at Sky Island soon?!" Luffy asked, "Are we, Rein?!"

"Who can say?!" I laughed as I watches the cloud coming closer, "But either way, we're going to find out! Cause we are heading into the clouds!"

"YEAH! Let's go!"

At that final declaration, we blasted right into the large dark clouds.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Okay! Finally finished with this chapter! A lot of shit happening in my life so I wasn't able to update as frequently as I normally can.**

 **At any rate, this part is finally finished, now to Skypiea!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	24. Ch 24:Skypiea

**Chapter 24: Skypiea**

* * *

Elsewhere, on the Grand Line, on a large galleon, a couple of days ago…

The galleon is huge, while not the largest kind, it is pretty massive. Housing twenty cannons on either sides, with a pair of paddle-wheels at the sides lifted above the water. Painted with gold and red, its figure-head is of a large dragon head that seemly made from bronze, in its mouth a large cannon at least several meters in diameter.

Three large black sails catching the winds while a black flag flutter up at the top, on it is a Jolly Roger. A dragon skull on its side with and two bones behind it as well as a sword right down the middle.

And just outside the captain quarters, a man sits down on the bench-chair reading the papers. His face is obscured by the news but the black mantle is visible on his shoulders.

"Oh, Alabasta finally ended that civil war of theirs." The man pointed out, "About time, it has been going on for far too long. Cobra sure took his time…"

"Isn't Alabasta where Agnis is living right now?" A woman walked up to him stated.

She is a youthful lady with long curly seaweed-green hair that reaches to her waist and lapis-like eyes, a bandana on her neck, wearing a blue vest showing some of her cleavage and her stomach under a red leather jacket folded up to her elbows and dark red tight jeans that has tears in a few places on the legs with a pair of black high-heel boots. On her right arm is a steel bracer with a gap in the front.

"Hm…? Is that right?" The man muses, "Wonder how he's doing…?"

"Crocodile was defeated recently too, right?" She added on, "By a Marine Captain? His name was Smoker, if I recalled correctly."

"Okay, that's got to be a cover-up." Another man stated as he walked up to them with a cocky stride.

This man has faded blue messy hair with emerald-like eyes and a small goatee, wearing a dark green long-sleeve shirt that has a slid the middle of the collar with a pair of grey pants that has a yellow sash around his waist and a pair of brown sandals along with a pair of brown leather gloves that reaches halfway up his forearm. On his back is a large round steel shield with the Jolly Roger painted on it.

"A cover-up?" The lady asked.

"I know that Smoker guy." He stated, "He's that famous captain from Loguetown in the East Blue. Strong, sure. But not enough to actually take down Crocodile of all people. I mean, he doesn't even know Haki."

"Then, who did?" She wonders.

"Maybe this upcoming rookie?" The man suggested as he produced a bounty poster.

"Straw Hat Luffy…?" She reads out loud, "And… 100 million?! At this part of the Grand Line and this early?! Don't tell he's the one that took down the Warlord?! Is this for real, Wulf?!"

"Crocodile's original bounty was 80 million, right? There no other way for some rookie to suddenly shot up the infamy scale this quickly. Not to mention his two other crewmates." He then produced two more bounty posters for her to see. The lady took them and read out loud the two names.

"Pirate Hunter Zoro… 60 million. And… Dragon Princess Rein… 57 million?"

The man on the chair felt his eyebrow twitches a little at the last name.

"Just as a comparison, her original bounty was 15 million from the East Blue." The man pointed out.

"Her bounty increased by 4 times?!" She cried, "What did she do?!" She reads the notice on the poster intensively, "…Let's see… No way! She defeated Jak?!"

"Jak?! That infamous assassin from the North Blue?! Jak the Ripper?!" One of the crew member cried.

"I heard he took down an entire battalion on his own!"

"Wasn't he wanted for 50 million beri?"

"That girl took him down?! What kind of monster is she?!"

The man on the chair puts down his paper before…

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

He broke into a howling laughter that echoes across the deck. The entire crew all looked at their captain with either confusion or annoyance as he continue to laugh his heart out. He slowly descended into chuckles before leaping out of his chair with a grin.

"So they made quite a name for themselves, have they?" He smirked as he looked into the sky, his bright ruby-like eyes glistering in the sunlight, "You have joined quite a crew, Rein."

"Captain Sen…?"

"Alright! This calls for a celebration!" Sen shouted with a grin raising his fist into the air, "It is party time, people! Bring out the booze! Get the chefs cooking! We're going to have a feast!"

"Huh?! But we just have one last week! And that's for finding you!"

"Who cares about that?! Let's go, people! We're burning daylight!"

"We're going to have to go hunting again soon…" The woman sighed.

"Can't be help, Luca." Wulf shrugged with a small grin, "You know how Sen-sama is these past couple of decades."

"Of all the habits he picked up from that guy's crew…" She groaned.

* * *

I woke up coughing out water, or cloud? I don't know, it feels different from the standard sea water. "Oh! She's awake!" Chopper stated happily as I opened my eyes gasping for breath. Huh? Why is the air thinner all of the sudden?

…Oh right, Sky Island. We are pretty high up after all. Man that was one hell of a ride, shooting into the cloud like that. I must have passed out along the way.

"Did… we made it?" I asked as I got back up. I then paused as I looked at him worriedly, "Did Sanji performed CPR on me…?"

"Oh! No, he didn't!" The reindeer told me, "It was actually Robin that saved your life!"

"Wait, what?!"

I looked at her, who grins back with a wink, "Your lips are rather soft~"

I couldn't look at her as my cheeks start to feel red. Her mouth… on mine… does this count as a kiss…?

"Hey, Rein! Look around us!"

I shove that thought aside as I got back on my feet. I took in the scenery around us and… It was… astonishing… like something out of a fairy tale! Clouds all around us like seas, far as the eye can see. I hardly flew much back on earth, but this scenery sure is amazing! You can't ever get a scenery like this anywhere, even on the highest peaks of the highest mountain!

"Amazing…" I stated in awe, "We're actually sailing on top of the clouds…"

"Of course we are." Luffy stated matter-of-factly, "They _are_ clouds."

"No, no, that's just impossible." Zoro, Sanji and Chopper pointed out.

"This must be what Norland meant by the 'Sea of the Sky'!" Nami stated, "But wait, the Log Pose is still pointing up!"

"Maybe this is only the middle part of the emperornimbus." Robin pointed out.

"Eh? We need to go higher?" Chopper asked, "How?"

"I don't know, but I know what I'm going to do!" With a grin on my face, I dashed into woman's room, grabbing my fishing rod and throwing a line into the clouds below, "I'm going to catch me a Sky Fish!"

"You're fishing, NOW?!" Nami shouted at me.

"Come on! It's not like we can really do anything right now." I told her with a smile, "Besides, don't you want to see one too?"

"A sea is a sea!" I hear Usopp cheers as I saw him leaped off the side of the boat and dived into the cloud ocean.

"…did Usopp just dive into the cloud sea?" I asked worriedly as I placed my rod down on the railing. Wait, isn't this the part where…

"Hm? Yeah, he did." Chopper nodded.

"Crap!" I quickly took off my shirt and dived in after him. I swam after him as fast as I could, making sure not to dive too deep in this cloudy waters. I saw his swimming silhouette in the distance and quickly swim up to him. I grabbed onto his arm and tugged, he turned to me with an annoyed look as I pointed up.

He shrugged with a shake of his head and we both proceed to swim up. It is pretty tricky to swim up with the severe lack of buoyancy compared to the blue oceans below, but we are at least making some progress, despite our air running out very quickly. I was at the near end of my own air supply when an arm shoots down towards us.

Luffy! He must be trying to save us! We both grabbed onto his arm and I gave it a strong tug. The rubber arm retracts back up with us on it as we rockets upwards hopefully. I felt a tug on my swimwear and turned to Usopp, he pointing down with an extremely pale face. I shakily looked down in fear and I wished I didn't.

Underneath us, there's an enormous jaw coming straight towards us! 'UP!' I mentally screamed as I tugged on the arm harder.

I felt the arm pulled back as we rockets us out of the water, I gasped out for air as I looked back at the serpentine creature coming straight towards us.

"Something followed them back!"

I heard our crew screamed in terror as the both of us landed on the deck with hard thuds. I barely looked up as I watches Zoro leaping off the boat with swords drawn and with a slash, pops a giant tentacle coming towards us. Following that, Luffy and Sanji one-hits the serpentine Sky Fish as I try to calm my breathing down a bit, but the thin air isn't making it any easier to do so.

I got back up my feet and was about to go back to my rod when I felt something moving inside of swimwear.

"KYYAAAAA!"

I'm not ashamed, I screamed like a little bitch when I realised that. I struggled to pull down the top half and manages to pull out whatever it is inside. It was so close to my womanhood that there are some lingering sensation on my-

Nope! Not going to think about it!

I tossed the weird fish aside and struggles to pull back up my swimwear in hope to save my own dignity, "Gah… that's so gross…" I groaned out tiredly as I finally got the strap on my shoulder, "How did it even get in there…?"

"My, what an interesting fish…" Robin stated with a smile as she picked up the very much alive Sky Fish, "Is this the Sky Fish described in Norland's logbook? What a strange animal… It must have adapted to the cloud-like sea's environment to have such a look."

"Like that flat-looking eel and balloon octopus?" Zoro asked.

"The cloud ocean must have weaker buoyancy compared to normal sea water, so they evolve in such ways to survive here."

"Their scales looked like feathers too…" Nami chimed in.

"But they felt as gross as any fish…" I added in with a groan. I still can feel its skin on mine…

"And they tasted as good, too!" Luffy pointed out with a cheer happily eating a plate of cooked fish.

"Sautéed it with some lemon grass." Sanji stated with a grin.

"You cooked it already?!" I stated in shock. Damn, he worked fast! Does the Sky Fish cooked faster than normal seafood?

"This is good!" Nami stated in surprise as she took a bite, "I've never tasted such a flavour before!"

"Really?! Let me have a taste!" I stated as I pinched a piece from the plate. Wow! What is this?! So fluffy and tender! Even more than any other fish Sanji cooked up before! Is this what eating cloud feel like?! SO GOOD!

"Sanji! Cook up the big guy as well!" Our captain commanded eagerly.

"Oh right, the rod!" I quickly rushes back to my fishing pole. Luckily, it hasn't been pulled down into the waters.

"Hey! Everyone!" Chopper suddenly called out to us, "There's a ship! And… a person…? Wait, WHAT?!"

"A ship?" Nami asked.

"You saw a ship, Chopper?" Sanji asked.

"Ah! No, um… there was a ship… but the ship isn't there anymore!"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"T-There's a bull running on a rectangular cloud!" Chopper cried completely panicking, "I-It's charging from over there…! This is bad!"

"Calm down! I don't get any of that!" Zoro tells him.

I then felt a ping on my observation radar, I turn where it's coming from and I saw it. A man wearing a large tiki-like mask charging towards us with a shield and bazooka on each hand. Wait, if I recall correctly… he is…

"A human?!" Sanji cried as he followed my gaze, "Someone's coming towards us!"

"What the- is he running on the clouds?!" Luffy cried.

"I don't think he's friendly!" I called out as drawing out Raitou.

"Eliminate." With that one word, Wiper charges towards us on his skates. Within half a minute, he took down Luffy, Zoro and Sanji with relative ease. The thin air must be finally getting to them… I unsheathes my sword in preparation to fight him as he charges towards me. I swings my sword as hard as I could in this altitude at him but he dodges it easily with a hop before slamming his boots into my face, pushing me back and down onto the deck hard.

I nursed my bruised nose as I watch him leaps off the boat and aims his bazooka right at us?! Crap! This isn't good!

"THAT'S ENOUGH!"

And then, another man shows up, a more elderly knight riding a bird charges at Wiper who blocked his lance with his shield, sending him back onto the cloud ocean.

"What?! W-Who is it this time?!" Nami cried in panic.

"No need for fear!" The knight, Gan Fall if I recall his name correctly, proclaimed proudly, "For I, the Knight of the Sky, am here!"

"A-A knight?" She stuttered in fear, "W-What's going on in this sea?!"

A few tense moments later, Wiper seems to be have went off somewhere as I spread out my observation far as I could to find him. Nothing. He is gone. Thank goodness for that!

"…did he leave…?" Gan Fall muttered.

"He definitely did." I pointed out with a groan, "I don't sense him anywhere close by."

"Sense…?" The old knight looked at me with confusion, "…Do you possess Mantra, young lady?"

"Mantra?" Robin questioned curiously.

"Never mind that!" Nami cried before shouting at us who are still on the ground slightly panting, "Why are you four so useless?! You all got taken out so easily!"

"Tsk. That was embarrassing…" Sanji panted tiredly.

"For some reason… I can't move my body very well…" Luffy gasped out.

"Might be due to the lack of oxygen." Robin pointed out, "We are pretty high up in the clouds."

"To be speaking of such things, are you people perhaps citizens of the Blue Sea?" Gan Fall asked us.

"What's that?" Nami asked, "More importantly, who are you?"

"I would be the 'Knight of the Sky'. Just a passing mercenary." He stated, "All people that lived under the clouds are known up here as citizens of the Blue Sea. In other words, did you come up here from where the sea is blue?"

"Oh. Yeah, that's right." Luffy nodded.

"Then I guess it can't be helped. This place is 7000 meters above the Blue Seas, called the White Sea." Gan Fall pointed out, "And 10 000 meters above is the White-White Sea. The air up here are thinner compared to the Blue Seas, the average people from the Blue Seas can't handle the difference very well."

"Okay! I think I'm getting used to it!" Our captain declared pounding his chest a little.

"Yup, it is definitely getting easier to breathe now…" Zoro nodded.

"Truly is…" I muttered as I got back on my feet sheathing Raitou. This reminds me of that time when Sen trained me in that unique biome once, where there are plants that eats up oxygen leaving very little air to breath. I guess I can thank Sen for his crazy training again…

"No, no, no, no, that's impossible. You can't just get used to it." He tell us waving his hand in dismissal.

"But wait! That guy from before, how can he run on top of the sea like that?" Chopper asked.

"Now, now, wait a moment here." The old knight tell us, "You probably have a lot of questions, but first thing first, I need to talk business with you. Like I've said, I'm a mercenary. This is a very dangerous part of the sea. Those who do not know how to fight in the sky will be attacked by those guerrillas like before or become food for the Sky Fish."

"As such, I like propose a deal. 5 million extol for one whistle, and I'll come save you."

"…"

"…"

"…?"

"What are you talking about, old man?" Luffy asked confused.

"Ah?! Q-Quit acting like a fool! The price is already pretty cheap!" Gan Fall cried, "I won't accept even one extol less! I have living expenses too!"

"That's why I'm asking you what extol is!" He stated, "And what's this whistling business?!"

"Wait, you people… didn't you come here from the top of the High West?" The old knight asked, "You must have come across one or two islands on the way here!"

"I told you, I don't know what you're talking about!"

"W-Wait! There are other ways to get to this sky ocean?!" Nami cried, "A-And by what you said, there are other sky islands out there?!"

"Of course there are!" Gan Fall nodded in surprise, "How could you not know?! How did you come up here in the first place?!"

"By the Knock-Up Stream."

"That monstrous stream?! You people actually came up through that?! I never thought there would still be people brave enough to even consider that…"

"So it wasn't a normal route after all…!" Nami sobbed.

"We're here, aren't we?" Luffy pointed out nonchalantly.

"We almost died!" She screamed tugging on our captain's clothes angrily, "If we patiently collected more information, we could have used a safer method! And you!" She glares at me, "You knew there are other ways to get up here, didn't you?! You could have say something!"

"I actually don't!" I yelled at her with a glare, "If I knew about such routes, we wouldn't have to go through all that trouble! I would have rather take the easier and small risks route!"

"It may not be better if you do. Did you lose any member of your crew?" Gan Fall asked.

"No, we're all here." Our captain tell him.

"The other routes aren't like that." He explained, "If 100 people want to go to the Sky Islands through other routes, it would be a gamble with no way to predict how many would survive. But with the Knock-Up Stream, it is either everyone dies, or everyone survive. A huge gamble with either 0 or 100. No one would take such a risk these days. I deeply respect your navigator who has both courage and real strength."

"Yeah, it was all thanks to me!" Usopp suddenly sprung up with some bravado, "When these guys were crying and giving up, I said, 'I will show you my navigational skills!'."

"Oi/Quit lying." Nami and I told him as I dope-slapped him on the head while she pulls on his cheek.

"One whistle." The old knight dropped a whistle onto the deck, "Blow this whistle once, and I'll come down from the heavens to save you! Using the currency of the sky, each whistle would cost 5 million extol! But as a gift for your bravery, your first whistle will be free of charge. Use it to call me at any time!"

"Wait!" Nami cried out as Gan Fall is about to take his leave, "We don't even know your name!"

"I would be Gan Fall, the Knight of the Sky!" He proclaimed loudly, "And this is my partner, Pierre!" He leaped onto the bird who gave a cry as he flew off, "And before I forget; though a bird, Pierre has the power of the Horse-Horse Fruit! Which means he can become a winged horse!"

"No way! It's a Pegasus?!" She cried in awe.

"That's right! A Pegasus!"

And her awe was shattered along with everyone else's as we saw the weird form of a Pegasus by the bird. I would call it a wannabe Pegasus myself. Man, that face really does show it well, does it?

"I wish you luck, brave ones!"

With that, he took off into the clouds with the weird Pegasus bird-horse thing. I stared at the leaving form of that knight before turning back to the crew with a shrug, "There are weirder things on this sea, that's for certain."

"And he didn't tell us anything useful, either…" Robin pointed out.

"Great, now we'll back to square one…" Nami groaned.

"How do we get higher…?" Usopp wonders.

"Okay, let's call the mister and ask him!"

"WAIT!"

Nami and Usopp quickly grabbed onto Luffy before he could even attempt to blow the whistle. As they argue back and forth, I went back to my rod and carry on with my fishing. We'll get to Skypiea eventually, it's only a matter of time. I mean, where else are we going to go except up?

* * *

After a while, the ship moved on towards the waterfall looking cloud Usopp saw in the distance. I manages to bag some smaller Sky Fishes along the way to my delight. All sorts of them in various colours and shapes, there's one that looked like a pufferfish, only rounder and completely like a balloon. Man, I can see the challenger's fire in Sanji's eyes when I show him my catch. Can't wait for him to cook these up the best way he knows how!

"There's a huge cloud in the way…"

"What do we do…?"

I returned out to the deck after storing some of my catch in the fridge, where I saw the large clouds blocking our path. "It's floating above the Sky Sea, so it's probably not a part of it." Sanji pointed out.

"…Then what kind of cloud is it?" Nami wonders, "If it's a normal cloud, we can just sail straight through it."

"We'll know once we touch it, right?!" Luffy stated as he winds up his fist and throw out a stretch punch towards the fluffy wall. His fist is then bounced off the cloud much to our surprise. And with as much enthusiasm of a five year old, our captain leaped onto the cloud with delight.

"Look! I'm bouncing! Not sinking at all!" He laughed as he played around on the fluffy cloud, "It's fluffy too! Like cotton! What's this, what's this?! This is so much fun!"

"AMAZING~!" Chopper cried in glee.

"What kind of phenomenon is this?" Nami wonders.

"Quite strange, isn't it?" Robin pointed out.

"I'm going too!" Usopp declared leaping to the cloud along with Chopper as we watch the kiddie trio bounce about on the cloud.

"If the cloud is like that, we won't be able to get past this place…" Nami stated.

"Maybe we could find another route from up there." I pointed out before leaping off the ship and onto the cloud. I nearly lost my balance as I try to keep my footing on the bouncy fluff. It's like on a trampoline, only fluffier and softer too. And it's slightly swaying too. "I'll take a look around."

"Okay! We'll be waiting!"

"Hey, Luffy! There's something over here!" Usopp called out as we all rushed towards him.

I looked out over at the distance, and saw what I knew is our next destination. "There's our ticket up…" I grinned before surveying the place, "…Usopp, help me mark out a route and an entrance."

* * *

"A gate?"

"Yeah, under that waterfall-looking cloud." Usopp explained to Nami when we returned from our little expedition, "There's this huge gate."

"It might be the entrance to the upper level of this place." I pointed out, "Oh, and turn left at this point."

"Okay." I heard Sanji reply as our ship moved accordingly.

"Although, I'm worried about the whole gate thing." I added in worriedly, "What if we need to pay an entrance fee?"

"I highly doubt it." Robin stated, "Besides, we're pirates, right? We probably will be stopped if we try to enter through the legal method…"

"Guess that's true…"

"Hey! I think we passed through!" Nami called us as we turned to the front. In front of the Going Merry is the large gate I saw before. It is… breath-taking to say the least. The huge gate in front of the giant white waterfall is pretty intimidating, especially with what is written on it.

"Heaven's Gate…" Robin reads out loud.

"That waterfall cloud thing really is a waterfall…!" Chopper stated in awe, "It's flowing with the same type of clouds we were on just now…!"

"But to be called 'Heaven's Gate'…" Usopp muttered in fear as his legs start shaking, "Got to be a bad omen… it's like we're going to die…"

"Or maybe we're actually dead right now?" Zoro suggested with a grin.

"Ah! That would explain this strange world…" Sanji nodded in understanding.

"But we don't really go to heaven if we die, right?" I pointed out, "I mean, we're pirates and all that."

"EH?! We're already dead?!" Chopper cried in horror.

"Heaven? Looks like fun!" Luffy laughed.

And then a door near the gate opened up to our surprise, as a wrinkly old woman with wings on her back walked out holding a camera. She points it at us and clicks a few shots to my surprise. Wait, wasn't this like an important factor for this arc? What was it… something about trespassing…?

"Are you here for sightseeing, or to fight?" She asked us, "Actually, that doesn't really matter. If you want to go up, each person must pay 1 billion extol as entrance fee. That's the law."

"A-An angel!" Luffy cried in surprise, "So this is how angels look…! She looks like a picked plum!"

"Wait, a billion extol? How much is that converted to beri?" Usopp asked worriedly.

"Excuse me! What's the exchange rate here?" I asked her.

"Oh? You don't know?" The gatekeeper chuckles, "If I remember it right, one beri is about… 10 000 extol."

"So we'll need to pay…" Nami mentally calculate for a moment before realizing in horror, "100 000 beri each?! That's a rip-off! Can we DON'T pay the fee?"

"Sure."

"REALLY?!" Usopp cried, "We can still go up?!"

"It's no skin off my shoulders." The old lady stated with a grin, "I'm not the guard of this place. I just want to know your intentions, that's all."

"Oh! Then we're going up! We want to go up the sky island!" Luffy declared, "Even if we don't have the money, we're going, granny!"

"Is that so? Eight people, correct?"

"…? …Yeah, that's right." Our captain stated confused.

"Wait, how are we getting up?" Nami asked, "I don't see any way for-"

And as soon as she say that, the ship shook slightly much to our surprise. I take a quick look about to see two large crab claws grabbing onto the ship tightly, before we start moving forward at incredible speeds up along the waterfall and onto a spiral road that leads all the way to the top.

"What the heck…?" Sanji stated in surprise.

"The cloud is in a shape of a belt, like a river of some sorts…" Zoro pointed out.

"I doubt this is something that is naturally formed!" Nami exclaimed.

"There's no way this is natural!" Usopp cried.

We speeds along the belt some more, twisting and turning all about the spiral cloud path and pushing us all over the deck like some reverse rollercoaster. "Hey! There's something written at the top!" Chopper pointed out for us as we took a look, there is indeed some sort of sign near the exit.

"God Land… Skypiea?!" Robin reads out for us as we finally exits out of the path. And at the end… let's just say my lack of breath isn't just from the thin air.

Skypiea's beauty otherworldly nature truly cannot be captured properly by Oda's drawings. The clouds that made up the land, the white-milky ocean that seems to be made of cotton floats around us. Not to be mention the architecture, it is some mix of several countries style rolled into one. It is a prefect rendition of what heaven could look like!

"A-An island!" Luffy yelled out in delight, "It's the Sky Island!"

"Hey, Miss Navigator, isn't Skypiea…" Robin pointed out to us.

"Yeah, it's the same name as on the map Luffy found!" Nami stated with joy in her tone, "That galleon we salvaged must have experienced the same scenery as us right now…"

"It's breathtaking…" I muttered in surprised as we docked onto the island.

"Speaking of which!"

I felt an arm on mine as I turned to see Nami with a grin on her face, "Time to get change! No way are you going about this island wearing that! You have the figure, so let's flaunt it about!"

"W-Wait, Nami!" My cries are futile as I ended up getting pulled into the woman's room by our navigator with Robin not far behind. After a minutes of complaining and a little shoving about as well forcing outfit after outfit on me, she finally changed me out of my usual attire into something a little more… exposed.

I ended up wearing a pair of tight jean pants that reaches to just above my knees that hugs onto my hips and thighs along with a white decorative rope around my hips that is holding my sword in place. And instead of my usual one piece swimsuit, she forces me to wear a more seductive one, a red tube top that just manages to cover my breasts fully but leaving quite a cleavage. I'm glad that I get to wear my scarf still…

"My, what a sexy look you got there…" Robin giggles much to my embarrassment, "Your normal outfit really doesn't show your curves well."

"Please just kill me…" I moaned covering my red face.

"Oh, lighten up!" Nami laughed, "You should be proud! Now people can see how sexy you really are!"

"I don't want people to know how sexy I am!"

When we left our quarters, the South Bird which I have forgotten about starts attacking us. I left Nami to fend off against it on her own, think of it as karmic justice, as I proceeds to leap off the railing and onto the cloudy beach.

I feel the cloudy sea between my feet, the feeling is completely surreal. Despite swimming in it before, I never really got a good feel of the sea. It's like I'm stepping through some fog, but it has more mass and is more fluid that gas. I hop about a bit, feeling the fluffy shore between my toes. This is so surreal! I'm actually walking on clouds!

"There's no way there are marines that would follow us here!" Nami stated with glee as she stretches out on the shore, "We can finally relax! It's been so long since we went to a beach."

"More like never!" I added in with a kick on the cloud sea, "It was crazy event after event since we entered the Grand Line!"

"Hey, look at that!" She pointed out for us as I followed her onto some chairs. We both sat on one each and I bounced about on it in surprise, "Wow! It is made of clouds! They must have some crafting techniques to make things out of clouds."

"It's all fluffy~" I relaxed onto the chair lazily. Have you ever sat on one of those large bean bags? Well, this is that, but soft like cotton despite the bounciness. I could feel my energy getting sapped away…

It was then, I heard a beautiful melody. A string instrument, I'm sure, but not one I have heard before…

"Hey, there's someone over there!"

I turned to where Sanji is pointing, there's definitely someone standing over there in the distance. Ignoring the cries of my crewmates as they paced about, I decided to take a closer look. Upon closer inspection, it is a young lady with wings on her back, probably about my age or younger, with blonde hair styled with two weird bob antennae on her head.

On her hand is a… oh, so that's what a harp sounds like!

Wait, she looks familiar… I think she played a huge role in this arc… what was her name… co-something…?

"Heso!" She greeted us with a smile as she descends down the cloudy mount she was on, "Are you guys from the Blue Sea?"

"Ah, yeah. We flew up here from the bottom." Luffy stated, "Do you live here?"

"Yes, I live here." She stated with a smile as she kneels down to pick up a small white fox that is running up to her. Aw~ that thing looks so cute~! "This is Skypiea's Angel Beach." She then took notices of the pair of pumpkin-looking things Luffy was holding on to, "Oh, that's a Konasshu. Do you wish to drink it?"

"Huh? Drink?"

She took one of the fruits(?) from our captain and pulled out a knife from… somewhere? Where did she keep…? Anyway, she turns the fruit around and with a knife, cuts into it, "The top is like steel, so biting won't do anything. You have to cut it open from the bottom." She cuts a small hope and plops in a straw from-

"Okay, where are you pulling out those things from?" I asked curiously.

"…?" She looked at me confused as she hands the fruit back to Luffy, "What do you mean?"

"…you know what, forget I ask." I sighed rubbing my temples. Thinking about it will just break my brain, I know it will.

"YUUUUUUUMMMM!" Luffy suddenly cried in delight, "This tastes so good!"

"What?! Is it that good?!" Usopp asked anxiously.

"Please open this one too!" Chopper asked politely.

"I'll do it, Chopper." I smiled as I took the knife offered by the angel-Conis! That's the name! Anyway, I took the offered knife from Conis and cuts opened a hole from the bottom the same way she did. And then took a straw from her as well and stick it in.

I let Chopper have a sip, whose eyes sparkles in delight as he swallows one big gulp, "So delicious!"

Curious, I decide to take a small sip as well, only to suck up some more as I tastes the fruit's juice. How do I describe it… it's like coconut water, but slightly condensed and sweeter. Heck, I would drink this over coconut any day! "Delicious!"

"Hey, something's coming from the sea!" Zoro pointed out, I took notice of a figure in a distance riding towards us.

"Oh, that's my father." Conis informed us.

"Heso, Conis!" The man in the distance called out, which she happily return the greeting.

"Hey, what is he riding on?" Nami asked curiously.

"Ah, you mean the waver?"

"Waver?"

"I'm sorry, I am going to stop now." The man rides along the waver towards me with no signs of stopping SHIT! I quickly jumped out of the way as I watches him crash into the tree. I looked at him deadpanned as he got back up shakily, "Sorry about that, is anybody hurt?" He asked worriedly.

"Ask yourself that first!" Zoro cried.

"Wait, didn't we recover a similar thing from that wreckage?" Nami pointed out, Luffy nods as a reply, "So that's a waver… the windless ship in Norland's diary…"

"Are these your friends, Conis?" The man asked as he pulls his vehicle back up straight.

"Yes, I just met them, father." Conis stated with a smile, "They're from the Blue Seas."

"Really? They must be really confused about things here then." He nodded with understanding, "This is the White-White Sea. I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing?" I asked confused.

"I forgot to introduce myself. My name Pagaya. I'm sorry."

"Seriously, why are you apologizing?!"

"This is good timing." Pagaya stated with a smile as he took out a rather unique colored lobster from the basket on his back, "I just finished fishing. I've caught the most delicious food in the White-White Sea. These are Sky Lobsters, they are pretty delicious. Please, come to my home. I'll treat you to some of the sky's 'happiness'."

"Really?! Let's go! Let's go!" Our captain cheered in anticipation.

"You're going to make Sky Cuisine?! Please, let me help!" Sanji called out.

"Hey! I have some seafood I caught in the White Sea!" I added in, "Let add that in as well!"

I quickly dashes back aboard the Going Merry and dashes right to the kitchen. After bagging all of my catch, I ran back out prepared to show Pagaya and just witness Luffy performing an impressive flip off of the Waver and splashing into the cloud sea below. "Oh, come on!"

After I finally manages to get Luffy back on the shore, and a few arguments here and there as well as Nami showing her prowess over the oceans by mastering the Waver almost instantly, we all made our way towards Conis' and Pagaya's home.

"Quite a catch you got." He pointed to my bag of seafood, "You must be quite a fisher to catch so much in the White Sea."

"Well, I did learn from some of the best." I stated with a grin.

"I'm looking forward quite a meal." Conis stated with a smile.

"I'll cook you the best seafood you'll ever tasted, Conis-swan!" Sanji boasted with a love tornado.

* * *

A few explanations for the style of building and architecture of the Skypiea later, we made it to Pagaya's house. I hand our catch of fishes to Sanji as he and the elderly angel entered the kitchen to cook up our lunch, or brunch…? Anyway, they are preparing our meal.

I mostly ignored Conis' explanation of Dials and their functions in their society as I decided to sit down and take a look around the house. It is pretty minimalistic but pretty as well. No extra flair to the furniture, mostly practical setting with an additional sense of otherworld-ness. I pressed on the Lamp Dial and watches it light up as I let out a small chuckle.

This world has never stopped to amaze me time and time again.

"Say, Rein." Robin called on me, prompting me to look at her, "Didn't you gather similar shells down below? Could those be Dials too?"

"Oh, you have some Dials with you?" Conis asked me curiously.

"Yeah, a few." I stated before it hit me, "Ah! I should've brought them out with me when I got to get the fishes…"

"It's no big deal." The angel tells me with a smile, "I mean, we aren't in actual need for any Dials at the moment."

* * *

After a few minutes of waiting, Sanji finally exited from the kitchen with a platter of seafood at hand, "It is done!" He declared proudly as he places the dishes on the table, "This is my 'Sky Island Full Course special with Fruit and Sky Seafood'. Please, enjoy."

"OH! Looks tasty!" Luffy exclaimed in delight as he bit down onto one of the lobsters with gusto.

"Oh my, what a beautiful dish!" Conis stated in surprise as she saw one of the plates, "I've never seen fish served in such a manner."

"Balloon Flounder." Sanji stated with a grin, "From what I can see when preparing it, it resembles a puffer fish. No worries, I have gotten rid of the poison sack."

"Delicious!" I squirmed in my seat as I ate one of the sashimi slices. Never in my life have I eaten puffer fish and now I know why it is a national favorite.

"Hey, where did Nami-san go?" The blonde chef suddenly asked worriedly.

"She should be on the sea." Usopp pointed out before digging back into his meal.

"No, she's not on the sea…"

"She probably went out to explore." Luffy stated.

"F-Father…"

"Oh, Conis… I have a real bad feeling about this too…"

"Hm? What? What are you muttering about?"

Conis, with a slightly paled expression explained to us, "In Skypiea, there is one place where no one should ever enter. That place is very close to this island, and can be easily reached with a Waver."

"The place where no one should ever enter…?" Zoro asked, "What's that?"

"It's the holy land." She further explained as her face turns paler with each word, "The land where God lives, Upper Yard."

"A land where God lives?! Where no one should set foot in?!"

I got a sinking feeling I know where this is going to go…

"Ah! H-Hey, Luffy! What were you thinking about just now?!" Usopp cried grabbing onto Luffy's vest in panic, "You just heard what she just said, right?! 'No one should ever set good', that means nobody can enter!"

"Oh really~, a place where nobody may enter~?" Our captain giggled, "I see, a place that nobody may enter~"

"Oh hell no!" I shouted at him, "Don't you even think about it! If god is offended and sent lightning down on us, I'll make sure to send you to him as a sacrifice!"

"Relax, I mean, it is god, right?" He laughed, "Gods are really nice people, right? He'll forgive us."

"Ah, but breaking the rule set by God is the same as disrespecting God." Conis pointed out.

"Eh? Is that so…? Oh well, it doesn't really matter."

"Yes it does!" I screamed at him.

"Alright! Let's go find Nami!" Luffy declared, before pinching another meat off the lobster, "But let me finish eating first…"

"What if something happens to Nami while you're wasting time here?" Sanji asked worriedly, "Leave it here, we'll come back quickly!"

"A-Actually, we don't know for sure if she really went there, so please don't act so recklessly." Conis assured them, "If we end up upsetting God Enel, this will become very problematic…"

"God… Enel…" I muttered. Okay, that name is ringing some danger bells in my head. Is he an important figure in this arc? God… God… I know there is something about God in this arc but… Enel… Enel…

Ah, no good, I'm drawing a blank. Why didn't I pay any good attention to this arc?!

"Ah, by the way, you said you have a broken Waver." Pagaya pointed out, "If it's not too much trouble, please let me have a look at it. I will repair it if I can."

"Yes, my father is Dial Boat Engineer." Conis nodded.

"Really?! Thank you!"

* * *

All of us descend back down to the beach where Luffy shows the old broken waver we salvaged from the galleon to Pagaya. I returned back into the cabin to get started on the next log entry. I have a lot of things to write about!

As I describe the White Sea into the logbook, I try to recall what I can remember about this arc. I know we will made it to the City of Gold and ring the giant bell, but the starting point to there is a little… scarce. I remember something about priests and sacrifice, goat men, something called Shandia and a large snake. Other than that, it's mostly fuzzy.

Wait, I think I remember something about trespassing- hold on… that lady from the gate…

I then hear shouting from the deck and rushes out to see what's the commotion is about. "What's going on?" I asked worriedly.

"Some officers came out of nowhere and is demanding we pay a fine for trespassing." Zoro pointed out.

"Trespassing- Oh! Yeah, now I remember…" I groaned slapping my forehead with my palm. I can't believe I forget something as important as this!

"Please wait!"

We all turned to the voice as we saw Nami riding towards us at top speed calling out to us, "Luffy! Don't oppose those men!"

"Huh?! But these guys…!"

"Don't oppose them…?" Usopp wonders before remembering, "Hey, Nami! Can we afford to pay an entry fee of 7 million beri?!"

"Ah! That's good! We can still get away by paying the entry fee! Of 7… million beri…" I heard her said before she deprives into muttering and why isn't she slowing down? "THAT'S TOO EXPENSIVE!" She shouted as she rams the waver into one of the officer. And by what the others are exclaiming, he is the captain of this platoon…

"…Okay, I think she may have an anger issue…" I pointed out.

"Agreed." Usopp and Chopper nodded.

After that, it was one big mess of fighting and violence. I think the captain said something about punishment called Cloud Drifting and then Luffy beat the crap of the platoons with Zoro and Sanji helping in the fight. A couple of minutes later, the officers are down for the count as they mostly argue about the money issue.

"…That was quick." I pointed out in with nod.

"As expected, all according to my 'Formation B' battle plan." Usopp proclaimed.

"Really?!" Chopper cried in awe.

"As if." I deadpanned dope-slapping the reindeer in the head.

"Ha…hahah… you fools…" The captain chuckled, "It would have been fine if you had done as I said… We, the White Berets, are the nicest law enforcers in God Land. _They_ , on the other hand, won't be so forgiving… With this, you have become Class-2 criminals. No matter how much you cry or scream, hahahahaha…"

"The Priests of Upper Yard will personally judge you all, HESO!"

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Okay, finished with this chapter! And damn, this was a long one. I don't know where I should stop, so this just keeps going on and on and on…**

 **Sorry for taking so long to complete this. I have trouble in writing this, with no idea how should I write this out. At least the first part anyway. After this part, it should be smooth sailing for me for now…**

 **Anyway, I like to thank those who got the time to review this story. It really helps me when you does that, it let me know what kind of problems there are in this fic so I may try and correct them.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	25. Ch 25:Sacrificial Alter

**Chapter 25: Sacrificial Alter**

* * *

*WHACK*

"OW!" I winced as I feel the goose egg on my head, "What was that for?!"

"For forgetting such an important detail!" Nami screamed at me, "If we have known about such a thing, we wouldn't have been labelled as criminals!"

"…Nami, we are PIRATES…"

"You know what I mean!"

"Do you really think it would change anything whether or not we know of such a law or not?" Usopp pointed out, "We probably would have used force to get through anyway."

"You. Shut up."

After that large ass-whooping our monster trio did, the White Berets all left the beach with threats of judgement by the priests or something along those lines. That left us on the beach with our two locals and a very pissed-off Nami. And apparently, she thinks this is all my fault for forgetting something this important and basically blamed me on this whole mess!

How was I supposed to know we did an equivalent of illegal immigration?! This arc's starting portion isn't as entertaining as the major points and this entire arc has an extremely slow build up to its main plot element! I bound to have forget some things! Give me a goddamn break!

"Come on, it's not that bad." Luffy shrugged off, "Also, why did you come back? We were about to go to 'The place that no one should ever enter' for a big adventure–Wait, I mean…"

"I knew coming back was a smart move…" She groaned before poking our captain in the forehead repeating while ranting off, "Big adventure?! I told you! There are some really scary guys on that island! You just saying that because you didn't see them yourself! Even though I don't know if they're really gods or not, their super and illogically immense power is real! An island like that, I will never go there a second time!"

"Well, fine then!" Our captain grumbled, "You can stay here. We'll go by ourselves."

"NO! Pursuers are coming! We're leaving this country right now!"

"LEAVE?! Don't talk crap like that! Just think! Which is more important, ADVENTURE, or your life?!" He asked.

"My life! Followed by money!" She stated out firmly.

"Ah, then followed by me~?" Sanji asked.

"Shut up!"

*BONK*

Nami punches Sanji away with a fist before he can even come close to hugging her.

"Oh, I JUST realized something." Usopp stated in a panic, "We kept trying to get to Sky Island, but we never thought about how to get back!" He turns to Conis with a worried expression, "Is there a safe way back?! Can we even go back to the Blue Seas?"

"Well, there are two options… but with your current situation, there's only one path you can take." She explained, "You must go back down to the White Sea and head to the far east to a place called 'Cloud End'."

"Cloud End… Okay, I got it." Usopp nodded understandingly.

"Even so…" The angel turned to the side slightly guilty, emotions of guilt and fear radiates from her in huge waves. Is she… hiding something from us?

"What's the matter?" Zoro asked.

"…No, it's nothing…" She muttered, "…I just… the Sky Ocean is very big…"

"It's alright." Nami assures her, "We're used to such things already. Plus, if we stay here, we'll just caused more trouble for you."

"Ah! Mister, can I take all the food from earlier?" Luffy asked.

"Oh, of course." Pagaya tells him.

"All right! Sanji, get the lunch boxes!"

"You don't miss a thing, do you?" Sanji sighs dejectedly.

I ignored the rest of their conversations and walked back to the Going Merry to help with the preparation. I saw Chopper getting back on the boat with his clever use of his Devil Fruit powers as Robin puts down the rope ladder for the rest of us. I climbed onto the deck and heads right into the cabin to change out of my attire into something more combat worthy.

I puts on a beige short-sleeved blouse that is left opened that still reveals my top and my decorative rope is exchanged with my usual sash as well as putting back on my boots.

But just as I put on my boots, the boat starts to shake quite violently. I, along with Nami who have put on a shirt, races out on to the deck to see what's going on. I looked down from the edge of the boat and finally notices the giant lobster under the Going Merry dragging us away.

"W-What's going on?!" Nami cried out in a panic, "Where did this giant lobster come from?!"

"I don't know! It just appeared from under the clouds!" Chopper cried.

"Crap, where is it taking us?!" I cried out panicking.

"Quick! Everyone abandon ship!" Zoro shouts out.

"W-What about the ship?!" Our doctor cried out, "If they take our ship…!"

"Don't worry. I'll stay here!"

"Like hell you are!" I screamed at him, "What can you do on your own?!"

"I don't think that's a viable option for us…" Robin pointed out, I followed her gaze to the huge horde of flat shark-eel fishes rushing towards us with maws and sharp fangs ready to take a bite from us.

"…This just fucking blows…" I growled.

"W-What are we going to do?!" Chopper cried.

"…Maybe… IT has begun…?" Robin stated.

"Heaven's Judgement, you mean?" Zoro growled, "So instead of sending pursuers after us, they make us come to them… Cunning bastards…"

"Waitwaitwait, are we going to that island again?!" Nami cried before screaming at the top of her lungs, "LUFFY! USOPP! SANJI-KUN!"

* * *

I just barely dodged the Sky Shark swimming towards me, my eyes thankfully protected from the cloud-sea by Usopp's old goggles. I glanced to my side to see Zoro struggling with one of them with his sword blocking their jaws from biting into them. I watches him break surface before it diving back into the clouds and swimming past me.

I swam up to the surface to get a huge gasp of air before diving back to take on the Sky Shark that was after me. I readied my sword, aimed properly and…

"Tail Spike!" I stabs my blade right into its eye, the shark struggles against me violently as I pushed Raitou further into its eye socket. I felt my back break the surface of the sea, and took a big breathe and twist my weapon before slamming it in as hard as I could, I felt my weapon break bone and the blade goes right down into its hilt just as I hit the water.

The shark twitches for a moment, before finally goes limp and dead. The carcass floats into the surface, I got broke surface and with a struggle, I pull out my sword from its eye, "Yeesh…" I grimaced at the blade covered in blood and some pink-substance that I don't want to know what it is.

"GET OUTTA MY WAY!"

I then saw another shark bursts out of the water with Zoro punching the animal out of the cloud-water. Okay… a swordsman punching his opponent into submission…?

…Wait, I did the same with Wapol so…

When that lobster… shrimp…? When that shellfish has brought us into an island with enormous trees the size of skyscrapers, where it left us on some kind of platform in the middle of a large lake. From the stones' carving, it resembles an altar of some sort. And then, Zoro have this great idea to try to swim to shore and I'm an idiot to follow his suggestion. Things happened, and we are just barely managed to defeat two giant sharks.

"Hah… hah… looks like we won't be able to swim ashore…"

"You don't say?!" I growled at the swordsman as we climbed up the stairs back onto the altar.

"But… where are we?" Zoro wonders.

"All we know for certain is that this is somewhere in Upper Yard." Nami pointed out.

"It looks like a sacrificial alter…" Robin pointed out.

"Please don't say that, please…" I groaned as I pulled the goggles off my head. The last thing I need right now is that kind of images…

"Looks like we've been brought to a real dangerous place by that damn shrimp…" Zoro stated as he wringed out his wet shirt. I would do the same, but I'm only have my tube-top to cover my chest so…

"…I wonder if Heaven's Judgement is to let us starve in this place…" Robin wonders.

"Would something that normal really be done by god?" He asked as Nami tossed him a dry blue sleeveless shirt.

"I don't know." She shrugged, "I've never met him."

I got back on board and head down into the woman cabin to change out of my wet clothes. It's a good thing I took off my blouse before jumping into the lake, so I just have to change my top and pants. I'm now changed into a dark red one piece swimwear under the blouse with a dark green pants and my usual boots, an orange rope around my waist to hold onto my sword and my gloves.

By the time I got out of the cabin, I saw Zoro swinging on a vine while performing a really bad imitation of Tarzan.

"Where is Zoro going?" I asked Nami worriedly.

"We are going to explore Upper Yard a bit." Robin tells me.

"We're finding history~!" Nami cheered.

"…Robin mentioned treasure, didn't she?" I mentioned with what I assume is a deadpanned expression on my face. Her whistling answers it for me.

After that, the two girls manages to swing to shore, leaving me and Chopper in-charge of guarding the boat. I've asked Chopper about the hull's situation and he said that it isn't that bad, but there are some parts that need patching up. Thank goodness for that… it was the Skypiea arc that really did the final nail in the coffin for Merry…

With that information at hand, I went into the kitchen to pick out some Dials to use. I remember I asked Sanji to kick at the Impact Dial with as much strength as he can as fast as he can. With that much power behind it, it should be enough to knock back anyone.

Let's see… maybe I should-

*PIIIIIIIIIIIIIH~!*

"The whistle?!" I quickly dashes out of the door with sword drawn just to witness Chopper slammed into the mast hard, his body denting the mast a little from the impact. "CHOPPER!" I looked to the side to see a man in a world war two pilot attire on the deck with a large metal lance in his hand, flapping next to him is a weird large bird. I felt a ping on the back of my head as I saw a vision of the bird blowing fire at the mast overlapping my sight.

Crap! That isn't good!

I ran at it drawing my sword in the process and stabbing right at the bird, I manages to graze under its eye leading to it crying out in pain and the blast of flame shoots passed the mast and into the air not damaging anything.

"R-Rein…" Chopper panted out as he got on his feet, "Be careful, that lance burn stuff!"

"A woman and an animal…" The man stated as he raised his pilot goggles.

"Who are you?!" I shouted at him pointing my sword at him, "Why are you here?!"

"I have no need to introduce myself." The man declared, "For sacrifices have no need to know my name."

"Sacrifices?"

"This here is the Alter of Sacrifice." He continued to speak, "As we speak, your other friends are risking their lives to come here. On this island, there are four separate territories governed by us, the priests. When the target enters one of them, no one other than the corresponding priest may attack them. That is the rule."

"But this altar, on the other hand, is not part of anyone's territory. A free area, so to speak. It's free game for any of us." He explained, "Well, that's only if the people being tested are dead."

"W-What?! T-Then…" Chopper realized, "If Luffy and the others made it here and save us, we are allowed to escape from here?!"

"Yeah, that's it." The man scoffed, "IF you can escape this free area that is…"

"So it would be a battle-royal either way…" I noted.

"That WAS the original rules of judgement. But depending on the situation, the rules are changed to fit. Like… for example…"

"Three of the sacrifices uses the vines to escape into the forest."

…

…

…

"GODDAMN IT ZORO!" I shouted out in anger. Of course it is his fault! He HAS to go exploring! Who does he think he is, LUFFY?! And damn it, Robin, Nami! Why do you guys have to go with him?! Why didn't I go with him?!

"For the crime of running away, someone must pay for it with his life as 'Sacrifice'." The man explained, "That is the way of the world. When they come back, they will also be punished. So they can realized their mistake." He then leaped towards us, "You must give your life to God!"

"Fuck off!" I charged right at him and swung my sword from below. He moved his lance a bit up so that I would miss his timing and I just barely dodged an image of his incoming fist before the real deal flew passed my head. Thanks to his own confusion, I charged at him with sword raised to strike. He then stabs his lance right at me, I seen the path and place my blade at the right angle so I could redirect the blade and run my blade along the side of his weapon towards him.

"A pommel strike? No, a stab."

Before I could realize what happen, he duck under my stabbing blade and punches into my gut hard. I coughed out air before a hot hit on my face as I'm tossed onto the mast hard. I felt the side of my head a little, feeling the probably scorched portion before I saw a vision of his lance stabbing into my head. I manages to get my sword up to block it, the tip of the lance pressing hard against the edge of my sword.

"Get off her!" I hear Chopper yelled as I notices at the edge of my eye Chopper rushing towards him with a fist ready to punch him. The assailant got his lance off my blade and swipe at the doctor, flame bursting from the cut. "Chopper!" I then saw another vision and I blocked the priest's fist with my handle which unfortunately meant I'm defenceless. And he took that chance by kneeing me in the gut again.

I nearly fall to my knees but I stood firm as I got ready to redirect his weapon stabbing right at me. With one hand on the blade, I read the path of the lance and pushes his lance to the side avoiding the mast and I charges right at him. "From above." I stopped mid-swing the moment he said that before slamming my pommel down right into his palm. I then with my spare hand grabbed onto his weapon arm's wrist.

I saw another vision and decides to counter, "No kneeing for you!" I sweep my foot under his as such my thigh is on his. And then with one movement sweep up his foot and then stomps my other foot onto his pivoting one and pushes him down onto the deck.

The man let go of my pommel, the image of him punching my side flashes in my eye for a split second and that allowed me to try and block his fist with my bicep.

"I am right…" He stated glaring at me, "You have Mantra as well…"

"Yeah, what of it?"

"Nothing, just pointing that out." He stated before slamming his forehead onto mine, knocking me off him before with his lance stabs into my bicep hard. I screamed out in pain as I felt my flesh being cooked and burn by his flaming lance, causing me to let go of my weapon. And with his lance still in me, he tosses me onto the railings, where I slammed onto by my tail bone.

I slumped down on the rails before I felt his lance stabbing into my gut. Another scream left my mouth as the burn starts to intensify, "That took longer than I intended." He says before he pull out his lance and aimed the tip of his lance right at my throat.

Is this it…? Am I going to die here…?

"Rein!"

"Die."

And just as I thought I'm done for, I saw a figure in the distance riding a large bird coming towards us. And in the next moment, the man swung his lance back to block an attack from our savior's opening strike. "Sorry for the wait."

"KNIGHT OF THE SKY!" I hear Chopper cheered as I saw the two man broke their clash and got on their bird and took to the skies. I stared into the sky as I witness the two men clashes against each other over and over again at intense speeds. It's like jousting but in the sky at lightning speeds.

"Rein! Are you okay?" Chopper asked as he got close to me.

"As good as someone who got two holes in her." I lightly chuckled.

"Hold still, I got to disinfect your wounds…"

As he got to work with that, I looked back at the fight going on in the air. Gan Fall clearly had the advantage in this, that man is getting pushed back. But there this aching feeling at the back of my head that something bad is going down. I then heard something, the tightening of strings…?

And then, Gan Fall suddenly stopped in the air, both him and Pierre just froze in the air unable to move. And that priest took that chance to stab his burning lance through the old knight. "Knight of the Sky!" Chopper cried as we witness the old man dropped into the cloud sea below, the Sky Sharks starting to swarm the area.

I then saw our doctor jumping into the water much to my shock, "C-Chopper, wait a minute!" I flinched a little as my wounds start to act up. No, I'm not letting it stop me!

I ignored whatever babbling that priest is saying and with all my might, dived into the watery clouds below. My wounds burn and ache under the salty clouds as I felt my legs cramping up. I ignored the stiffness of my limps and tried to swim towards the two sinking bodies. I barely got Chopper and just about the grab onto Gan Fall when I suddenly felt numb. Energy just left my body as I could barely move an inch.

Damn it! Move, body, move! I'm not going to die here! I'm not going to get kill by some sharks of all things!

Dammit! DAMMIT!

That was my last thoughts as the unconsciousness took hold on me.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Done! Finally, after many procrastination, I finally finish this chapter! It is pretty short though, forgive me for that... So yeah, Rein's battle with Shura. Not the best written fight, but I'm still working out on how does Observation Haki works on a first person perspective. Hopefully this is good enough.**

 **So yeah, I want to point out that I might be rewriting the first chapter of his fic. There have been quite a few complains on how I wrote it and so I'm planning on editing a few things, which makes me want to know.**

 **What should I've done with the first chapter? I like to hear some suggestions honestly. Anything is game, just let me know and I see what I can do with it.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	26. Ch 26:The Fire of Shandora

**Chapter 26: The Fire of Shandora**

* * *

I was originally just a standard college student, trying his best in his studies and life. My scores are decent to keep me from flunking out, and my family is pretty alright all things considered. My dad is a standard office worker while my mom worked at a small retail shop, a standard family so to speak.

Except for one person…

I have an older sister, a few years older than me. She is amazing, good grades, good looks, all around great person. When I was young, she would be the one that look after me, with both our parents so busy most of the time. I often joked about how she would never find a boyfriend if she keeps caring for me all the time, and she would laughed it off saying that she doesn't need one.

Well, I was right on that front.

She came out to me first, when she introduced her girlfriend to me. It was a shock to me at first, but I came to accept that part of her. After all, she looks happier with her and she deserves it. But our parents on the other hand… they are a little… divided… on the issue. Mom is pretty supportive, but dad is kind of in denial, saying that it's just a phase for her.

That left with quite a little tension between them, arguments broke out quite a lot whenever they meet. In the end, after my sister graduated from university, she moved out from home. I often visits her time to time after school, mostly to ask her for advice and to keep her informed on our parents' issues. I wanted her to come home and at least try to make up with dad, but seeing her just living her life with the girl she love, I couldn't say that. She's happy, and I'm okay with that.

And then… IT happened…

I can never forget that day… I was just returning home from school when a call came. It was the police, and they need one of us to come identify the body. I can still feel the sharp pain in my heart when I heard the news. Apparently, there has been a series of burglaries in the neighbourhood and my sister's apartment is a victim of that. She somehow confronted him when he was sneaking in and after some tussle, he thrown her off the balcony and she fell to her death.

There was a funeral, her girlfriend was compensated and life returned to normal. At least… for most of us. My dad was in complete distress, mourning over the fact that he has come to accept her relationship and never got the chance to tell her that. It took my mom months to comfort him and keep him from suicide multiple times.

For me… I never really got over it. My sister was the whole world to me and her sudden absence left quite an impact. Over the years, I've manages to move on a little, trying to live out life as always. She wouldn't want me to stop moving, so I didn't.

And then, the accident and now I'm in the One Piece universe.

It was crazy, turning into a girl, meeting Sen, fighting pirates, punching Don Krieg, fought against the Arlong Pirates, even made it into the Grand Line and now in the mystical Sky Island. My life has changed for the insane, but I never really mind. I come to enjoyed the company of the Straw Hat Pirates, Luffy's crazy antics, Zoro's napping habits, Nami's money obsession, Usopp's hilarious lies, Sanji's cooking, Chopper's childish wonders, even Robin calm existence. They became the new world for me, a new family for a man, or woman, alone in theirs.

And yet… here I am, dying by drowning in a cloud sea.

I wanted to go on more adventures, to see Zoro become the greatest swordsman in the world, to see Luffy become the Pirate King, to watch Usopp become the man he dreams of becoming, to find the All-Blue with Sanji, to discover the true history with Robin, to explore the world with the map Nami created, to watch Chopper grow into a fine doctor.

I… don't want to die!

"You're not dead."

Huh?

When I came to my senses, I'm in a wide open grassy plains. The sun beating down on me but there is no heat. The wind blows, but no chills. This place… isn't reality. Am I… back in limbo?

"Glad that I can finally meet you."

A voice called out to me, I took notice of a person behind who I immediately turned to face. It is a woman. The person has a long white hair that reached her waist with parts of it tied in a braid and circled around the back of her head and round golden eyes, wearing a white gown that looks like the Greek clothing that goddesses wear that reached to her thighs.

Who is she? And where am I?

"It must be very disorienting, being here I mean." She stated.

"…Yeah…" I cautiously replied. Okay… where is here? I don't remember Skypiea having large grass plains like these.

"Ah, yes, introductions!" She stated with a laugh while scratching her head, "I'm Harp. And I'm a goddess."

A goddess? Really? Where was she when I'm stranded naked on that island few months ago?!

"This must been rather alien to you, waking up here of all places." Harp stated, "Oh, here is Limbo, or at least, my version of it. My sister's has a more space-like vibe to it, I blame anime for that…"

"Limbo? Wait, this is really confusing…" I pointed out, "First of all, why am I here? I was supposed to be dead."

"Oh right." She laughed, "You're not dead, just merely unconscious."

I survived?! Talk about lucky! "Wait, if I'm not dead, then why am I here?"

"It's mostly for me to welcome you properly into this universe." She laughed, "I was really busy when you first came here, so I never got around to doing it."

"Welcome me?"

"It was by chance you were chosen to come into this world." She pointed out, "That your soul and body is allowed to enter here."

"Wait, what are you talking about?"

"The fact that you came to this universe! This is an experiment I came up with." She added on, "I've taken real interest in those self-insert stories from that 'internet' your kind created. So I wondered, what would happen if I sent some actual people to these fictional universes? So I did! You were the second one I have sent to this world."

"Wait, second…?" I then remembered. That face that Bon Clay showed me… could it be? "My sister, a woman by the name of Lina, was she the first?"

"Oh yes, Lina." Harp nodded, "I believe I sent her here a few human years ago…"

So around the time of her death. So she is really here…

"But wait, why am I a girl in this world?" I asked her.

"Oh that, considered it a gift from me to you." She stated, "I mean, to actually send your proper body to these worlds are impossible. Your bodies aren't from there, after all. So I restructured them to fit in that universe."

"But why a girl?"

"Oh, that's just to keep things interesting!" She laughed, "I mean, a man in a woman's body? It would never be really boring with you!"

"…"

"But that's not all I've done!" She chuckles, "Your body is much more durable and heals faster than the standard resident of that world. Why did you think your wounds disappear faster compared to your crewmates, or why that poison didn't have much effect on you?"

So the reason I'm able to handle most of the fights up till now is not just due to Sen's training, but this body as well?

"Ah, you are waking up soon." She stated with a smile, "That's all I have to say to you. Have fun with your new life!"

"W-Wait! I still have-"

With that last piece of knowledge, the Limbo disappeared into a blinding light.

* * *

The first thing I noticed when I've properly woken up, is that I'm definitely outside. The trees are a dead giveaway. The next thing I notice, is the loud voices around and the smell of cooking. It is my crewmates' voices.

I turned to the side, just as I saw Chopper put down a bowl of something next to me. He looked at me before gasping in what I presumed is joy, "Guys! Rein has woken up!"

"Rein, you doing okay?" Nami asked me worriedly.

"Where…?"

"In the forest near the lake." She stated, "Do you remember what happened before you passed out?"

"Um… Fighting… fire lance… fire bird…" I then recalled and shot up, which isn't my brightest idea as my body protested badly to my sudden movements as I let out a sharp gasp of pain.

"Don't move so much!" Chopper cried, "You've lost quite a lot of blood! And the hole in your gut hasn't healed yet!"

"W-What happened to that priest guy?" I asked.

"He's gone when we were saved by South Birds." He told me.

"I see… and the Going Merry?"

"A few ropes are burnt to cinders, but nothing much a little patching up won't fix." Nami stated.

"T-That's good…" I sighed in relief. At least the Going Merry isn't that damaged as in the manga… "So… what did I missed?"

"Nothing much, we are reviewing facts that this island is actually an original part of Jaya. And the Knight of the Sky is called God for some reason…" She explained, "And recalling the information we know about the City of Gold."

"Ah, got it." I nodded in understanding.

"You knew about it, didn't you Rein?" She pointed out, "That Upper Yard was Jaya from a distant past."

"Yeah, that part I'm clear on." I stated, "And yes, the City of Gold Cricket told us about is indeed here."

"Score!" Nami cheered.

"So the City of Gold is real?" Robin asked, "Are you sure about that?"

"Oh yeah, definitely." I nodded, "That much I can assure. But for its location…" I shrugged my shoulders, "Not exactly clear. I think I remember it being in a skull or something…?"

"Are you talking about what Noland wrote in his last entry?" Our archaeologist pointed out, "[I saw gold in the right eye of the skull.]?"

"Yeah, that's it!" Nami stated in glee as she produced two maps for us to see, "Look at this, when I combined the map of Jaya Masira lent us with the map of Skypiea right where Cricket's home is, it forms a skull! This is what Jaya looks like 400 years ago!"

"Ah! Then, the right eye of the skull he wrote is…"

"This place!" She points out the location for Usopp and us to see, "What Norland wrote down isn't some code, it actually represents the whole island of Jaya! But since the island broke in half, this riddle became impossible to solve!"

"We'll just go straight to this point tomorrow." She stated, "But we can't just leave the ship here, so we'll split into two groups. One to guard and move the ship for our getaway, and another to go to find the gold. And if Rein is right on this-"

"And I am!" I commented on it.

"-There are going to be a huge amount of treasure waiting for us there!"

Everyone cheered, me included although not as loud as I wished. I'm somewhat excited for this, this is the part I know really well. But now that the plans are set, I'm left to wonder about what happened when I was unconscious.

Harp, the goddess that send me into this world. She said this was just an experiment of her, but does she know how to bring me back after she have her fun…? Or… does she only sent those who are dead… I mean, she only brought me here after I died. And if what she says is correct, she also sends Lina into this world after her death as well.

Lina… it has been a few years since that day… she is probably older too. And she has been in this world longer than I have. She wasn't that big on anime as me, so I only hope she is safe on this ocean somewhere, hopefully not on the Grand Line. Wonder if we'll ever meet…?

"It's getting late." Robin suddenly informs us, I turn my attention to them, "We should put out the fire we're not using. It will expose our position to our enemies."

"…How foolish. Did you hear that Usopp?" Luffy pointed out, "She wants to put out the fire."

"Come on, don't say that." Usopp tells him, "She has been living in the darkness for so long, so she couldn't have known."

"What… are you talking about…?"

"Lighting a campfire is an obvious thing, right?!" Our captain cried.

"When camping, we must always have a campfire! Even if we die tonight!" Usopp added on.

"You're the ones that are foolish!" Nami rebutted, "Do you guys have any idea how dangerous this forest is?! There are those Priests! The guerrillas too! And all forests are dangerous at night! There are beasts and monsters too!"

"M-Monsters?!" Chopper cried in shock.

"Hey, Luffy!" Zoro called out from a pile of firewood both he and the cook stacked up, ready to be lit, "How's this for a woodpile?"

"Not you two too!"

"Don't worry, Nami-san." Sanji assures her as he lit up a flaming torch, "Beasts are often afraid of fire. It would be fine!"

"Behind you, behind you!" She cried pointing at the glowing eyes from the shadows, "There are already some of those things here!"

* * *

I couldn't really understand what happened next, but the large campfire is lit, and everyone is all dancing and singing around it with the large wolves that came by. It's official. The Straw Hats are always going to have a party wherever they go. Anyway, I sat next to Robin as we watch our crewmates all dance about and having a merry time.

It puts a smile on my face. No matter what the circumstances, the Straw Hats always finds a silver lining in the darkest of clouds. That is their- no OUR strength. I took a glance at Robin, she having that plastic smile on again but I can feel her aura shifting and changing. It's a lot more opened now, lacking that metaphorical barrier around her heart.

"Taming even the Cloud Wolves… haha, there are probably nobody else who would dare cause so much noise in Enel's backyard."

"Ah, you're awake." Robin greeted Gan Fall as he walked up to us.

"Sorry for waking you." I apologized gesturing to our dancing and merry crew, "It is always loud parties with our captain so…"

"No, no, it's fine. I'm the one should be saying sorry." The old man told us as he sat down, "I've caused you people so much trouble despite trying to help you…"

"What do you mean? You helped enough." Zoro stated after taking a swig from his bottle, "If you haven't show up, Rein here is probably dead by now."

"There are some stew leftover. Do you want some?" Robin asked him politely.

"Thanks for the offer, but I don't have the appetite."

"Oh! Weird old man! You're awake!" Luffy cheered, "Thanks for earlier! Come dance with us!"

"Yeah! Dance with us, Knight of the Sky!" Chopper agreed.

"Is that something a doctor should be saying…?" Zoro asked.

"Oh yeah, mister! How is Conis-san? Is she safe?" Sanji asked worriedly.

"She and her father are in my home. They are safe for now." Gan Fall informs him.

"Really? That's great!" The cook sighed in relief, "I had been worrying about them…"

"What happened with Conis?" I asked them.

"Apparently she went against God and the old knight saved her from divine wrath." Zoro stated, "At least, that's what Usopp told me."

"Ah…"

"…I've overheard your conversations earlier…" The old man spoke up, "So this place is originally an island called Jaya… However, do you know why it is called the Holy Land for us?"

"Hm?"

"For you Blue Sea citizens, having ground like this is a natural thing am I right?" He stated.

"Oh? Well, yeah." Zoro nodded.

"In the sky, this thing is almost unheard of…" Gan Fall continued as he scooped up a handful of dirt in his hand, "The Island Clouds can nurture flora, but it cannot birth them. Greenery and soil are not things of the sky. We call this 'Vearth'. For us, it will be forever being admiration itself."

I stared at him for a bit, feeling his aura shifting from cautious to trust, to guilt. If I remembered correctly, Gan Fall was the original 'God' of this land, and was thrown off his throne by the current one through sheer strength. And just before true co-existence between the two warring factions can occur.

* * *

Afterwards, the party came to a close as everyone collapsed from exhaustion and coming down from the alcohol high, everyone all tucked up for the night and slumber sweep over us. I, on the other hand, is unable to sleep at all. For some reason, I felt like I'm forgetting something really important that is happening tonight.

In the end, I decided to leave the tent and take a small stroll around the nearby forest. As I looked around, I felt a small ping on my observation radar. Three to be exact. I followed the aura to near the lake where I saw Zoro slinging an unconscious Usopp over his shoulder like some sack.

"Oh, Rein. You're still up?" He asked me curiously.

"A-Ah, yeah. Can't sleep." I answered him before pointing at our sniper, "What's up with Usopp?"

"Oh, found him sleeping here for some reason." He stated.

"Here? Of all places?"

"Beats me." The swordsman shrugged.

"…Is that Raitou with you?" I pointed out. Indeed, my own sword is visible among his three other swords.

"Oh, found it on the deck. Decided to hold on to it for now." He told me before walking back to the campsite, "Don't wander around too long! We don't need you getting lost this late."

"Kettle, meet pot." I spat back as he walked into the forest. I turned to the altar where Merry is sitting. I know I felt a ping on my radar around here. Zoro and Usopp makes two, but where's the third one? I looked around to check about where it came from, but couldn't find anyone.

*TOK*

*TOK*

*TOK*

And then… Sound of wood hitting wood echoes onward. I think it's coming from… I looked towards the altar, fog somehow envelopes the entire lake. And in that fog next to the Going Merry, there is a small silhouette thumping on the hull of the ship with what I assume is a wooden mallet.

What… am I looking at right now…?

There's a presence coming from the ship, a living thing. At least, to me anyway. Who is that? That height is that of Chopper, but the reindeer doctor should be still back at the camp. And what is he doing…? He, or she, seems to be hitting the hull, but it doesn't seems to be really damaging the hull. Is it… fixing it…?

Wait… silhouette in some fog… hammering the hull… Going Merry's… hull…

OH! OH! Now I remember! The Klabautermann! Merry must be trying to fix herself! Wait… that would mean…

I quickly dive into the lake and swim towards the altar. When I reach the top of the stairs, the figure is still tapping its wooden hammer on a plank that covers one of the cracks like a wooden Band-Aid. So the Going Merry is busted this bad…

"Merry…?" I called out to the silhouette, who stopped its hammering and turned to me. The spirit is just like its depiction in the manga. Large raincoat with its hood up shadowing the eyes showing only its mouth, the entire body is translucent. So this is a Klabautermann…

"Merry… that is you… right?"

"…" The spirit looked at me, at least I think it is looking at me, before it smiles, "…Thank you, Rein."

"Huh?"

"You asked the two monkeys to fortify my keel, in preparation for the Knock-Out Stream, didn't you?" It stated, "You knew that this would be the moment it breaks."

"…Is your keel…?"

"…No. Not yet…" It sighs, "No matter how you fortified it, my body is going to break soon. I'm an East Blue vessel, a Caravel. I wasn't made for the crazy seas of the Grand Line. It's only a matter of time. Right now is just patch work, but my keel will break…"

I didn't want to admit it… but what Merry said is right. It is not build for long voyages, and especially not one in the Grand Line. But… I recall that scene, that chapter… it isn't right… Merry has the will to do so… I know it can beat this… But…

"…How long…?" I asked worriedly.

"…Maybe the next few islands, but could be the next island immediately…" It told me, "I'm sorry… this is as far as I can go…"

"…Should I-"

"No!" The spirit sighed before aiming its hammer, "No… don't tell them that… you know how Luffy is… And Usopp, he… he would be devastated…"

I recall the start of the Water 7 arc. Yeah, he is right. Usopp would beat himself over it for not being able to do anything… Especially since this ship is basically what he have of his hometown…But before that is… "Fine. I won't say anything." I smiled at it, "But I'll be finding ways to help you."

"But-"

"No matter what you say, I'm going to help you." I stated firmly, "Merry, we are comrades, crewmates. And a crew take cares of its own mates. I promise, I'll find a way to fix you up."

"…You shouldn't make promises you can't keep." It told me, but with a sad smile, she replied, "Thank you, anyway."

"…" The spirit is right. This is a dumb promise to make. I know I can't possibly change the plot on this. It is physically impossible to do it. But… I'm still going to give it a try.

I'll save Merry, and even if I can't, I'll at least give it my all!

* * *

After that night was over, after Usopp fusses over the fact that Merry is now fixed up, we all split up into two groups. One of them head to the City of Gold while the other sail to the eastern shore front to wait for the first group in preparation for our getaway.

I ended up in the second group due to Chopper fussing over my wounds and pretty much ordered me not to come so not to reopen them. Which left me on the deck on lookout. I wanted to help Sanji with moving the supplies, but he assures that I don't need to.

"The wind is perfect! Direction is perfect!" Usopp proclaimed as he stood at the bow proudly, "Ah~ this is great. Our cruise is going along nicely. Although it is a bit slow… Oi, navigator! Speed us up!"

"There's nothing we can do, 'captain' Usopp." Nami tells him, sarcastic tone on the title, "The current of the Milky Road is too rough, so we can only rely on the Dial boat push us along."

"Alright! Go, Karasu-maru!" The sniper declared, "Also; Sanji, please be my guard. This forest is too creepy."

"Shut up. I'm only a guard for Nami-san and Rein-chan." The cook proclaimed.

"Okay then; Rein, be my guard please!"

"Okay." I replied.

"Don't encourage him, Rein…" Nami sighs, "Which reminds me, isn't it time for the strange knight's medicine? Where did Chopper said he put it?"

"My name would be Gan Fall, miss." The old knight pointed out.

"Oh, it's in the cupboard beside the refrigerator." Sanji tells her, who then went inside to get the medication.

"…Allow me to tell you people… a little bit of history of this country…" Gan Fall suddenly spoke up. Usopp and I took attention to his words and wait patiently for him to continue, "I was… until six years ago… the 'God' of this island."

"Are you an idiot, old man?"

Pierre appears to have taken a dislike to our sniper's words and morphs into his horse form to bite into his head hard. I sighed before gestured to the old knight to continue.

"The first appearance of this Upper Yard in Skypiea was like you said before, roughly 400 years ago. It is said that before the appearance of this island, Skypiea was a very peaceful Sky Island. They treasured the items from the blue seas that occasionally arrived up here via the Knock-Up Stream. All of the Vearth in Sky Islands appeared in such a manner. However, for a piece of land as big as Upper Yard to appear in the sky was truly, a miracle."

"The Skypieans then automatically assumed that this land was a divine gift, a holy land from heaven. We were very happy. But this island already had residents, so thus a war is raged for ownership for it. Those residents, are the Shandians."

"Shandians, as in those raiders?" Usopp pointed out as Sanji and Nami joined us at the bow with the redhead putting the cup of medicine in front of the old man.

"So then, those guys are part of the ancient civilization of Jaya?" The cook asked.

"Yes, they came to the sky along with the island."

"So then, they were forced out of this place?!" Nami stated.

"That is so." Gan Fall sighed sadly, "We Skypieans have robbed them of their homes out of selfish intentions. For 400 hundred years, the Shandians have been at war with us. They are only trying to take back their homeland."

"That's… sad." Our navigator commented.

"So, then it's all your fault!" The two guys in our group proclaimed towards Gan Fall. That in turn pisses off Pierre as he bites into their skulls hard.

"…It is correct. It is as you said." The old man stated as he drink down the cup of medication.

"No, it ain't." I add in my two cents, "It happened over 400 hundred years ago, right? You probably haven't even born yet."

"Even so… I have allowed this senseless war to go on."

"Then… what about Enel?" Nami asked, "Who is 'God' Enel?"

"Six years ago, when I was still the God, he appeared out of nowhere, leading a powerful army." He stated, "He gave the God's militia and the Shandians a devastating defeat. Since then, he has been in control over Upper Yard. I heard that the God's militia is held captive somewhere, doing intense labor, but I do not know the details. As for the Shandians… it doesn't matter to them who 'God' is. They simply continue ferociously trying to reclaim their home."

"Wait a moment here. If all they want is just to take back their homeland, why did they attack us back when we first arrived up here?" Sanji asked.

"That is because the aforementioned God's militia in captivity sometimes attempt to escape on ships. They're the Shandians' enemies, so the raiders attack them without mercy. They probably just mistook you as some of the escapees."

"What?! They attacked us for such a reason?!"

"This is one of the reasons why I became the Knight of the Sky, to help those escapees reach other Sky Islands safely." The old knight explained, "They are considered criminals, so they cannot stay in their homes, within Enel's sphere of influence."

"Well, if what you said is true, then this God Enel guy is nothing but a tyrant." Sanji sighed.

"Hey, hey, hey, stop the blasphemy, you idiot!" Usopp cried, looking around fearfully, "The Almighty God sees all! Could he have heard that just now…?"

"Since when did you start to talk like those Skypiea guys…?"

"Tyrannizing? No, it's worse than that." Gan Fall pointed out grimly, "Regardless the reason, Enel always somehow turn any travelers into criminals and pushed the Skypieans to take part in capturing them. Through this process, the citizens have developed 'an awareness of Sin'. When one sees that one has sinned by one's action, one becomes the most vulnerable. Enel knows this, and uses this method to create and control these 'Lost Lambs', as if he truly is an almighty god. He is a real powerful man."

"When we first reached Angel Beach, I actually thought this was a paradise…" Nami sighed, "This is so absurd…"

"Nami, I can think of two words to rebuttal that statement." I stated before counting down the numbers with my fingers, "Grand. Line."

"…"

* * *

Outside of Upper Yard, a lone winged woman armed with a rifle and in blue tribal clothing walked towards a series of men all with wings and wearing similar attires. As she looks at the leader prepared to talk, she recalled the time the old God came to their village to propose peace.

Regardless of what the old leader said, that man, Wiper, refuses a simple ceasefire and demands compensation in blood. She didn't know what the old God said to anger him to a point of attacking, she _does_ know of the chaos and violence that followed afterwards.

'Then and now, he still has the face of the demon…' The woman sighed mentally.

Just as she was about to join them, she notices the bag of Vearth on the ground spilled opened like some trash. "T-The bag of Vearth…!" She then realizes what Wiper has down, "Wiper! What have you done to Aisa's treasure–"

"Wait, Laki."

She is stopped in her tracks by one of the men, "Braham?! What are you–"

"There won't be another chance like this! We shall not let this chance escape!" She stops when Wiper starts his speech, "Anyone who is not ready can stay here. I won't blame them."

"What are you talking about, Wiper? We have always been ready!" One of them men proclaimed.

"Then are you ready to leave behind your fallen comrades in battle?"

"W-Wha…?!"

"If you are ready to step on your comrades, only then should you come with me!" He declared, "Because today, I'm going to cut off Enel's head."

"Once we defeat Enel, there will be no need to be envious of a bagful of Vearth!"

Laki stood there in shock as everyone looked at each other worriedly, before affirming with themselves. Everyone nodded, declaring their agreement to go through with it. In the end, with a mighty war cry, everyone charged onwards towards Upper Yard armed to the teeth. Laki stayed behind and starts to scoop up the fallen Vearth into the bag, 'That Wiper… he always…'

"Laki-nee!"

A young voice shouted as someone flew out of the trees. A young teen skids to a stop in front of her, with sweat-pouring down her face. She is short for her age, barely reaching the woman's shoulder, with bright yellow eyes and black hair tied in long flowing twin tails held in place by a couple of wing-designed hair ties. She wore a pale red top that shows her midriff with a leather skirt with tribal patterns painted on it. On her back is a long sledgehammer with two Dials connected to the weight.

"Leva? What are you doing here?" Laki asked the girl confused, "You're supposed to be back at–"

"Asia gone missing!"

That comment left Laki frozen in terror. The little girl she considered her second younger sibling is prone to sneaking off to the Upper Yard from time to time, but this time isn't the best moment for such an action! The place is going to be a giant battlefield! Not a place for a young girl to be roaming about!

"A-Are you sure she has gone missing?! Not to the bathroom or…"

"I'm sure, Laki-nee!" Leva cried, "I've looked all over camp, but she isn't there!" She then realized, "Y-You don't think… She went to Upper Yard?!"

"…This is bad… She could get killed out there…"

"I'll go search for her!" She stated firmly pulling her weapon off her back, "You concentrate on fighting the Priests!"

"Leva, wait! Upper Yard right now is-"

"No problem!" She smiled as she pulled a segment on the pole which turns the Dials upward, "I'm strong! I'll be fine!" She then places the pole between her legs and squeezed the segment. The Dials then turned on as it speeds the weapon with her on it flying into the air towards Upper Yard, leaving Laki staring at the disappearing silhouette of her sister flying towards the battlefield.

* * *

After Gan Fall told us the history of Skypiea, I went back into the cabin to write it all down into the logs. I also decided to write about the adventures that happened yesterday, mostly from my side of the view. Better get the whole story from then when this arc concludes…

As I wrote it all down, my mind drifts off to my remaining knowledge of this arc. After this, I remember that Luffy's group will meet and fight with the Shandians and the hostile Skypieans by either due to misunderstanding or just hostile to each other regardless the circumstances.

…Why did Zoro pop in my head just now…?

At any rate, with our group, we should be relative safe for now. We didn't really get into any real fights in this arc… At least… I don't think we are…

And just as I thought that, I felt a large ping on my observation radar. Huge one, and extremely dangerous! I dash out of the cabin back onto the deck, and time froze for me.

Behind on the railings, there stood the last person I want to face right now. In his half-naked glory and long earlobes, the GOD Enel is right behind Sanji with his hand approaching the blonde cook. I didn't really consider the consequences of my actions, just the fact I have to protect Sanji. And so, without any hesitation, I pull Raitou out from its sheathe and tosses right at the self-proclaimed god.

As soon as the blade penetrates skin, time moves on as the god screamed out in pain. I manage to get the god by the shoulder, the blood spill from the wound as everyone finally took notice of our intruder on the boat.

"Enel?!" Gan Fall cried out first as he slips into a fighting stance.

"Whoa, where did he come from?!" Sanji cried out.

"Wait, this guy is that God?!" Nami exclaimed in shock.

"I-Impossible…" Enel muttered as he grabbed onto Raitou's blade, "My body is injured… by a simple blade?!"

I quickly ran passed my crewmates to grab my sword. I manage to pull out Raitou when I saw Enel grab its blade, lightning crackling around him as he glared at me in pure rage, "You'll pay for your sin of hurting GOD!"

"No, girl! Get away from-"

"1 000 000 volts: VARI!"

The next thing I knew, my world became white.

* * *

Nami stared in horror as she witnesses her fellow female crew-mate get fried by pure electricity. The chronicler spaz and scream out in pain as the current passes through her body. A few seconds later, all that is left at the end of the sword is just a charred young lady whose grip remained tightly around Raitou as she collapsed onto the deck lifelessly.

"REIN!" She screamed in horror.

"Oh my god, he killed her!" Usopp cried.

"You…bastard…!" Sanji growled as he dashes towards the god with every intention to kick him down, "How dare you do such a thing to a lady like that!"

He then swung his foot right at him with a growl, the god grabbed onto his shin and releases lightning down his limb that shocks him down to his bones.

"No! SANJI!" The sniper cried out as the blonde cook is dropped onto the deck like a charred doll.

"Maggots… all of you…" He grumbled as he felt his wound on his shoulder, "But how does that blade even hurt me…? A Logia like me shouldn't be affected like this…"

"What do you want, Enel?!" Gan Fall demanded, "What do you wish to accomplish here?!"

"I originally wanted to just say farewell to you, ex-God Gan Fall." Enel stated with a grumble, "But it appears that I severely underestimated these blue sea monkeys. To think that Shura's warnings about that girl is too true. And with that sword in her possession…"

"Y-You bastard!" Nami screamed at him.

"No matter, with them out of the way, there is no way my plans would fail now."

"What are you planning now, Enel?!" Gan Fall shouted, "Haven't you done enough?!"

"Like I said, I just want to say my farewells." Enel stated, "These past six years have been fruitful for me. I have finished what I came here for, so I'll be leaving. You should be grateful. You get to get this large chunk of Vearth back after all."

"W-What are you…?"

"WAHAHAHA, you think we took Upper Yard for the Vearth?" The god laughed, "No, no… The reason we even have interest in this little island here is the same as these blue sea primates that came here, as well as the same reason the Shandians keep coming here! The only thing that is even remotely of interest on this piece of rock!"

"The City of God, Shandora!"

"W-What…?" Gan Fall is honestly confused. What does this gold thing that have Enel so interested in? He never even heard of such a metal before.

"WAHAHAHAHA! You still don't get it, don't you!" Enel laughed, "It's really hilarious, the only people that doesn't understand the value of gold are you Skypieans! Even funnier than that, the ultimate survivor of this game will think that he has won all that gold for himself! …Hm? Oh my, it appears the game truly started! Looks like it's time for me to participate too."

"W-Wait! What of the God's Militia?! What happened to them?!" Gan Fall demanded.

"That's something only GOD can know."

And with those final words, the lightning tyrant zaps away into sparks, leaving the three only conscious people on the deck completely dumbfounded by what happened. Nami has collapsed under her weak knees as she tries to make sense of what happened. Usopp is just shaking in his boots in sheer terror as he looked about for probably somewhere to hide.

"W-What now?! Both of our fighters are out and probably dead!" He cried.

"No, they are not dead yet." Gan Fall assures the sniper as he felt the blonde cook's pulse, "It is weak, but there is a pulse."

Nami immediately got up to Rein and place her ears on her chest. Sure enough, while a little faint, there is a heartbeat. "He's right! I can hear a heartbeat!"

"T-Then we need to treat them immediately!" Usopp exclaimed in a panic, "But wait, Chopper isn't with us! How are we going to heal them?!"

"We first got to take care of their burns." The old knight informed them, "Are there any anti-burn cream?"

"I think I saw some in the first aid kit!" The navigator pointed out.

"Hohohoho~! Hohohoho~!"

They all froze when they heard that ridiculous laughter. On the railings, there stood two rather ball-round men wearing the exact same attire with the exact same face and are even mirroring each other movements. "W-Who are you guys?!" Nami asked out fearfully.

"Wait, you're that ball-priest we took out at the Trials of Balls!" Usopp cried, "There were more of you guys?!"

"That's right!" One of the men exclaimed with a laugh, "The priest you killed is our big brother!"

"We are the vice-commanders of the God's Militia!" The other one stated with a hop, "We came here to avenge our big brother! Hohoho~!"

"B-Big brother?!" the sniper exclaimed in shock, "But you guys looked exactly the same as each other!"

"The three of us are identical triplets! I'm Hotori! And this is my brother Kotori!"

"And for our big brother Satori, we will kill you all!"

"PIERRE!" Gan Fall called out as the bird from below deck tossed out his lance, which he grabbed and slip into a battle stance, "We have to defeat them quickly and catch up with Enel! He may be planning to kill his prisoners! So please, get back, you two!"

"No! I'm helping too!" Nami declared as she puts together the Climatact, "For once, it's my turn to protect them!"

"Y-Yeah! M-Me too! I-I'm a brave warrior of the seas! I-I'll protect everyone!" Usopp declared as bravely as he could as he pulls back his slingshot aiming right at the two.

"…Very well!" The old knight readies his weapon for battle, "I'll be counting on you two! First, we have figure out what kind of Dials they are using!"

"Roger!"

With that, the fight with the two vice-commanders has begun!

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Finally! I was stuck on this whole part! I have absolutely no idea how to deal with Rein's involvement at this part of the arc, so it ended up taking a while. Sorry for the long wait! But now, you are probably wondering about the new OC that is introduced in this arc. Well, you just have to wait for the next chapter!**

 **So! We finally get to Rein's own past, huh? So yeah, I'm getting LGBT in this fic. And yes, I did say sisters in earlier chapters. What you make of that is up to you guys.**

 **Now, I was originally going to let Rein get kidnapped by Enel, but then I remember his personality and decide against it. I mean, what use he would have for her anyway? Instead, I let her get shocked to near death in place of Usopp.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	27. Ch 27:Shandora

**Chapter 27: Shandora**

In the forest of Upper Yard, Leva of the Shandians flew across the trees on her unique weapon. She looked around anxiously, trying to find any inkling of the young Shandian. "Aisa… where did you go…?" She muttered worriedly. She then landed on the branch, ejecting the Jet Dial from her weapon before inserting a new one.

'Only two charged Jet Dials left… I need to find Aisa fast, before I use up the last one…'

She then hears sounds of combat in the distance. Turning towards its origin brings her sight to a small ship on the cloud river. A Blue Sea ship with a goat head and sails.

'Huh, are those the Blue Sea denizens I heard Wiper talk about before…?' She wonders as she tries to make out whoever is on that boat. On the deck of the boat, there seems to be two white balls with hands fighting against some young lady and an old guy who looks a lot like…

"Gan Fall…?!" Leva mutters in shock before getting on her hammer and flying right down towards them. As she got closer, it became obvious that they are fighting against members of the Skypians' militia. They are making fun of them, playing with them as they deliberately hit the wounded people on the deck. The long nose man on the boat pulled on his slingshot and fired a few shots at one of the plump men, who dodges it with a laugh.

"Stop hitting them!" The long nose shouted as continues to shoot at the two plump Skypieans, "They are not in fighting shape!"

"Hohoho! No matter!" One of the two men stated with a menacing tone as he kicked the fallen charred woman, "They defeated our Satori! They don't deserve mercy!"

"Rein doesn't even fight him before!" The girl shouted angrily as she swings her blue metallic staff.

One of the round man blocked it with his glove with a laugh before proclaiming, "Thanks for the impact!" as he points his palm right at her face.

"I-Impact…?!"

"Nami!" The long man cried as he aimed a pellet at him.

"Take this!"

*PUUU~!*

The girl, Nami, coughed out in disgust as a fart is blasted out at her face. "W-What? It stinks!"

"HAHAHAHA! Got you! It's just my fart in a Flavor Dial!" The plump man laughed.

"Impact is over here!" The other plump man laughed as he slams his palm right at the long-nosed man, the sound of impact pings as he is sent flying as he coughed out blood in pain.

"Usopp!" Nami cried as he collapsed on to the deck groaning in pain.

"So, you have four Dials." Gan Fall noted.

"Haha! That's right! A Flame Dial! An Axe Dial! Impact Dial! Flavor Dial!" They declared, "Did you memorize them! Can you identify which is which?" They then hook their arms together and spins around like a dance, "C'mon! Who's Hotori and who's Kotori? Which hand has what? What will we attack with? Can you guess it right? This is our 'Surprise Dial Illusion'!"

"Illusion this!"

Leva jets through them with her hammer, the two of the dodges it with a laugh. She skids across of the deck, shocking pretty much everyone else on the ship.

"A Shandian?" Nami wonders.

"Wait, you're… Leva?" Gan Fall wonders.

"Hohoho! A lowly Shandian!" One of the plump man laughed.

"Leva, what are you doing here?!" The old man cried.

"I was just looking for a little girl, then I chance upon this." She tells him, spinning her hammer before got into a stance with the weight facing the plump priest, "Mind if I join in?"

"It doesn't matter if you get another person!" The two plump priests laughed as they spun about, "Especially a Shandian!"

"As much I don't like it, it would be advantageous for us to do so." Gan Fall sighed as he prepared his lance, "Follow our lead!"

"Yes!"

"The forecast is…" Nami winds up her staff, which that seems to have two parts crossed together at the end, "Typhoon!" She swings and send the cross-part spinning towards the two round men, who laughed as they easily dodged it. "Now, what Dial is on my hand!?" One of the plump man laughed as he raised his hand to Gan Fall, the old knight grabbing his cloth in ready to throw it up.

"That's Flavor Dial!"

"Eh?"

As soon as the Shandian said that, the glove farts out some passed gas at the old man's face. Gan Fall cringes in disgust before stabbing towards the round priest who dodges it with ease but have a surprised look on his face. "How does she know?" He wonders, just as he dodges an overheard strike from Leva's hammer.

"Hotori, move!" The other man declared as he points his palm at the cloud of gas, "Time for our flame-gas combo attack!"

"Flame-gas– Shit! Watch out!"

"Die!"

Flame bursts out of the palm, which ignites the gas into a large explosion that blows up the side of the railings. The two priests laughed and danced, "Hohoho! Those dumbasses got blown away!"

"Is that what you think?"

They stopped dancing when they looked at the smoke, before Leva leaped out of the smoke slamming her hammer's weight added with a air burst from her Dials right into Kotori's face, Gan Fall follows up by leaping up above them and stabs down and through the plump man, "You have underestimate me too much. Only a fool would think so."

"Kotori!" His brother cried in shock, just as the cross part of the pole spun back towards him which impacts onto him that sends him flying off the ship into the cloud river. Leva just stared at what just happened, before turning to Nami who caught back the cross-boomerang. "H…How-What kind of-How did you do that?!" She cried, "That shape shouldn't be able to do that!"

"O-Oh, this part releases heat while the other release cooling air so together-"

"Sorry to interrupt, but…" Gan Fall coughed out as he went down one knee holding his bandaged chest, "Mind if someone goes and get my gauntlet?"

"Your gauntlet–Wait, did your wounds opened up again?!" Nami asked worriedly.

"I'll be fine. Listen, there's an Impact Dial in it. Use it to finish him off."

"No mercy!"

But before Nami can rush down the stairs, Hotori leaped out of the cloud river. His eyes glares at Nami as he grits his teeth in anger, "First big bro Satori, now Kotori… I'll never forgive you all! No matter how much you beg, I will kill you all!"

"Go get the gauntlet! I'll buy you some time!" Leva tells her as she rushed towards the priest. The priest dodged her swing and raised his palm right at her face, she rolled out of the way down the stairs as pressurized air slices out from his glove and slices the railing behind her. She then aimed the tip of her hammer head at the him, squeezed down another part of the pole which then fired a blast of burning air towards the priest.

The plump man leaped over the attack landed behind her before aiming at his palm right at Leva. She prepared to move before she notices blue bubbles appearing around her. "Burn away!" He then blasts a burst of flames towards her.

"The weather now is 'Fog'!"

At that declared, the air around him just burst out into fog. He looked around his area in surprise, "W-Where did this fog come from…?" He then knocked back slightly as a weight pressed down on his body, a metal entered his vision that he realized what is going to happen.

"Gotcha~" Nami teased with a cheeky grin with Gan Fall's metal gauntlet right at his face.

"W-Wait–!"

"IMPACT!"

With that, a loud ping and Hotori is blasts back by the force and falls back unconscious with a bloody face as Nami dropped back on the deck from the recoil. When she lands on the deck, she screamed out in pain, "OWOWOW! Why did you ask me to use this?! My hand nearly got ripped off!"

"Impact works both ways." Leva tells her.

"W-Well… at least the ship is safe…" Nami groaned, "T-That's good…"

"Yes…" Gan Fall panted in pain, "…Yes… it is…"

Leva turned to the old knight who is panting in pain, confusion on her face, 'Why is Gan Fall doing with the Blue-Sea Citizens…?'

"I'm sorry, Leva, but may I ask a favor of you?"

"Hm?"

* * *

It is official, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit is an extremely overpowered Devil Fruit. Being a Lightning-Human is pretty much of makes you invincible and you can defeat anyone without even fighting back. All you have to do is getting touched and you win.

No prior experience and training whatsoever.

Also, now I know what being electrocuted feels like. Wish I haven't found out.

But I did.

It is not a good thing.

Anyway, the next time I regained consciousness, I felt the aftereffects of the attack, which includes slight numbness on my limbs and a killer headache that overshadows any hangover I have ever had in this life, and the previous one. I felt the softness of a mattress on my back and saw the wooden ceiling, so I'm definitely still on the Going Merry.

I also heard voices, but not voices as in sounds, voices as in blips on my Observation radar. I definitely recognized Nami's as well as Conis' and Pagaya, but there are two I do not recognize. One felt young while the other felt slightly older. I wish I can remember more about this arc.

At least I would have some kind of counter for Enel.

I felt my fingers a little, before moving my wrist slightly. Muscles are a little stiff, but I can still move if a little slow than what I want. And with that slowness and a little drowsiness, I got out of bed and grabbed Raitou that was sitting at the corner of the room, feeling the tightness of bandages over me before I make my way to the door.

The moment I enter the deck, I'm greeted by what seems to be sounds of people arguing on the deck.

"I'm not going!"

"Don't so stubborn, Aisa! You can't just wander in like last time! You can get killed!"

"No! I don't wanna! Let me go, Leva!"

"Stop struggling!"

I made my way to the stern, where I saw two young girls, in what appears to be tribal clothing similar to the one from the bazooka-guy that attacked us back at the White-Sea, arguing. The older girl is pulling on the younger's arm who is struggling against her grip. And crowding the two of them are Conis, Pagaya and Nami.

"Aisa! Would you stop this?! Throwing a tantrum isn't going to change my mind!" The pre-teen girl tells her.

"No! Stop pulling me!" The younger girl cried out while pulled against the firm grip.

"Now, now. Both of you calm down." Conis tells the two of them gently.

Nami seems to made aware of my presence and walked up to me with a worried expression on her face, "Rein! You're awake!"

"Miss Rein! Are you feeling any better?" Conis asked, "You were hurt pretty bad."

"As much as being struck by lightning." I commented, before pointing at the two arguing girls, "Who're the guests?"

"Shandians." Our navigator tells me, "The older one is Leva, while the younger is Aisa. Leva helped us when two round guys just appeared and attacked us after Enel stopped by, while Aisa was rescued by Conis and Pagaya on the way here."

"And they are quarreling because…?"

"Well… Apparently, Aisa apparently ran away from home and Leva is supposed to bring her back but as you can see…"

"Aisa! Laki is already worried sick for you!" Leva shouted.

"I don't care! You don't know what's it like!" Aisa screamed, "To have voices in your head slowly disappearing… it's scary! I don't want anymore voices to go away!"

"Voices?" I pointed out, "Wait, you have Observation Haki?! A young kid like you?!"

"I'm not a kid!" The young Shandian shouted, "And what is this Observation-thing?!"

"I don't know what Haki is, but what Aisa has is known as Mantra." The older Shandian explained, "It's an ability that allows a person to be extremely aware of their surroundings, and people's emotions if what I have noticed."

"Isn't that the very same thing you have?" Nami asked me.

"The very same." I nodded, "But I guess it's called differently here. Must be a Sky Island thing."

"You possess Mantra too?" Asia asked me with a curious gaze as the older girl let go of her wrist.

"Sure did. Got it just a few days ago." I stated, "And it can be really helpful, or a real pain of an ass to use. I didn't actually know how to turn it off and its on all the damn time."

"I know what you mean!" The young girl nodded, "Sometimes it's really helpful when I'm hiding from Wiper and the others, but when Wiper starts fighting… it's terrifying… all that anger…"

"It's must be tough, Aisa." Leva sighed, "But it doesn't give you an excuse to run off!" She pointed out angrily, "Aisa, I know it sounds like a broken Tone Dial at this point, but Upper Yard isn't safe right now. We have to go home now, while we still can."

"No! I'm going to save everyone!"

"How do you plan to do that?!"

"Like this!"

And then Aisa leaped off the side of the ship into the cloudy waters below, much to all of our surprise. "A-Aisa?!"

"AH! W-Wait a moment!" Nami cried as she shed her shirt and leaped into the watery clouds after her. When the two of them surfaced, the navigator has the younger girl in her arms as she tries to struggle out of the hold.

"Let me go!" The younger girl shrieked, "This is none of your business!"

As the two argued while Nami drag themselves onto a smaller waver bopping about a couple foot away from the Going Merry, I took notice of something large on my Observation Radar. I nervously turned to face it, and I paled as I saw a large scaly body slithering down into the cloud sea along with sounds of what seems to be drinking. That is a really large snake…

"Um… N-Nami…" I point towards the snake, whose head has rose out of the cloudy waters just in time for the rest of us to took notice of it.

"AAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

"W-What is that?!" Nami screamed.

"T-That's… The King of the Sky!" Leva cried out, "We have to get out of here! It's going to eat us up if we don't!"

"How are we going to get away from that?!" I shouted out, "I don't think any of the boats here can out sail a fucking titan snake!"

Then, all of the sudden, the monstrous reptile cried out in agony, before spazing out in pain that caused a chain effect in which it swerves all about hitting all around it before in its confusion starts chasing Nami and Aisa on their waver who in the navigator's panic has start riding away back into the Upper Yard, their screams echoed between the trees as the snake slithers back after them.

"…"

"…"

"So, that just happened…" I pointed out.

"Ah, crap, AISA!" Leva cried before picking up a hammer that was standing in a corner and placing it between her thighs. She then squeezed a part of the pole, and the Dial part of the hammerhead just puffs out smoke, "Oh, of all the times to run empty- Do any of you guys have any Jet Dials or Breath Dials I can use?!"

"I'm sorry, but we're out of Dials at the moment…" Pagaya apologized.

"Damnit all!"

"Wait! I think we have some Breath Dials in storage!" I stated before rushing into the Storage room to my large bundle of Dials I left in there a couple of days back. I took out a few Breath Dials and rushes back out, "Here! Fully charged but never found a chance to use them!"

"Great! Hand it over!"

"On the condition you are bringing me with you!" I stated firmly.

"Huh?"

"Wait a minute, Miss Rein!" Conis cried out, "You are still injured! Your body needs to rest!"

"Relax. I heal faster than most people anyway." I pointed out before pointing at the younger girl, "Look, I know there are some distrust between us and your people, but my friend is out there probably in mortal danger and I'm probably the only one that can track them down. Like or not, I'm going to best chance you have to find that girl."

"…Alright." She nodded before plucking out a Dial from the hammerhead, I hand over the Breath Dial and she places it in, "Hop on."

I sat behind her on her weapon as she twists the pole a little before I felt the weapon pulled forward with my body and the two of us flew out of the ship and into the forest.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Okay, it's a little short, and a little patchwork here and there, but I finally finish this chapter! Sorry if this isn't up to par from the previous chapters, but I can assure you that the quality for the next few chapters would be slightly better.**

 **Also, apologises for the long wait for such a short chapter, but I have somewhat of a writer's block when come to this arc. There's a lot of things I'm not sure how I should write and there are plot points I'm not sure how to handle with Rein. I have checked with a few SI-fics for how they deal with this arc, This Bites included, and… well… let's just say they did it way better than I ever could.**

 **Now, Leva.**

 **This girl (hint-hint) is probably the most bland character I have written so far. And probably haven't flesh out properly for most people. Don't worry, I would write out some more of her soon, and maybe then she wouldn't be so… plain…**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	28. Ch 28:The City of Gold

**Chapter 28: The City of Gold**

* * *

A pirate woman flying on a flying hammer controlled by a tribal girl through the forest like a witch with her broom…

There's a joke in there somewhere, I just know it.

But either way, that's my current situation. After entering the forest, using my Observation Haki as some sort of a tracker, we followed down on the trail behind the two girls as best as we could. Which is to say, not very good. Observation Haki is great for evasive and detecting intruders, but with the amount of skill I have with it currently, it is next to useless in tracking people. Maybe I shouldn't have thought so highly of it.

After a few minutes of aimless wandering, we landed on the clearing of roots on the forest floor to get our bearings as well as for Leva to reload a new Dial into her hammer.

"Damn, we're not anywhere close to finding them…" The young girl muttered tiredly.

"My radar is wide, but I can't find their signature anywhere…" I stated with a sigh, "If only there's a way to know where they might be heading towards…" And then, I felt a blip. Several in bound…

Three… four people coming straight for us…

And they are hostile.

"Leva, get ready!" I commanded as I drew out Raitou. In the corner of my eyes, she got into stance with her polearm as we both stood ready for combat, eyes weary and darting from side to side.

Three meters… two meters… one…

"Meh~!"

I turned to the direction of the sound as a couple of men flew out of the trees on what I assume are Dial skates, they are in white togas with wings on their back and a couple of goat horns on their temples. They charge towards us with palms wide and aimed towards us, "Prepare yourself for death!" One of them shouted out as strikes towards me with a palm strike.

I immediately take note of the vision of his attack and lean one side to dodge the strike before slashing upwards and cutting his torso. As the first men fell with a bloodied opened chest, his friend came up from behind him and aimed a kick towards me, I easily block the skate-boosted kick with my handle which I followed up with a kick of my own to his gut which I then followed up on with a slash towards his throat, slicing through his windpipe in one clean slash.

I then hear a loud cry as I felt a sudden gust of wind from beside me, I turn to see one of the goat-men in a large crater with broken teeth and a bloodied face with eyes rolled backwards, with Leva hammer raising her hammer from what I assumed is a one-hit kill. Another of the men charged towards her from the bushes which she then spun around with bursts of air from the hammer propelling the weighted end forward and slams it dead center of his groin, I winced at the damage, which then sends the man flying into the trees, smashing right _through_ the thick trunk and out through the canopy.

"Damn, wasted a Breath Dial…" Leva groaned as she unplugged the Dial on her hammer before reloading another one in.

"Who are these guys?" I asked.

"God's soldiers." She explained, "They must have saw me and attacked. Which means we shouldn't stay here too long…"

"…You're surprising mature for your age." I pointed out, "What are you, like… ten?"

"Fourteen…" She groaned, "Fifteen next month… And yes, I'm short for my age, I know that!" She then rests her weapon on her shoulder, "As for… well… if you are born in a civil war and being the only one in your age group, you tend to grow up pretty fast. I have to."

"Sounds… rough." I noted. It is natural, if you think about it. Shandians are in a constant civil war with the Skypieans for several centuries now. I doubt any of them have what akin to a good childhood, being forced to join in the war as soon as possible. Hoping to change to subject into something a little less moody, I decided to prod on a different case, "That hammer of yours, interesting mechanism. Never seen anything like it."

"Yeah, made it myself!" She suddenly declared with a smirk, "Being, well… you know… I thought of giving myself an edge. I may not be as skilled as Kamakiri, or as relentless as Wiper, but what I lack in strength and skill, I made up with ingenuity! This hammer is one of the first successful designs I have made! A total Leva original! And it functions as my transportation unit too! No skates for me! Sure, it is a little complicated to use, but once you figured it out, boy you would wish you have my brain!"

"You made this? All from scratch?!"

"Well, I started with a sledgehammer I manage to get from one of the Blue Sea corpses lying around in Upper Yard as my base, but every mechanism and design is all me! Me alone! And… I have created a few more other gadgets too! Like one that fires bullets using air from the Breath Dials! A-And that one which is pretty much a smaller version of a Burn Bazooka! I also recently manage to find a way to keep a Burn Blade's blade at a fix length! Although, I burnt down a few tents when testing the prototypes…"

I… don't know what to say. This kid is smart, like Tony Stark levels of smart! At age of fourteen, and with no prior knowledge of engineering, she came up with ideas for warfare that are WAY ahead for this era! Give her a decade, and I'm pretty sure she can create a mech suit powered by Dials alone!

If she and Usopp team up, I can see them creating an entire unique arsenal that would have filled up the entire storage within the first week.

"AH!" Leva suddenly stopped before turning away sheepishly, "I've gone off on a tangent again… sorry about that… it's just that every time someone asked me about my gadgets, I kind of get all overly excited…"

"You are amazing." I noted, her eyes widen in surprise, "To create such a thing on your own…"

"R-Really?" She asked while rubbing the back of her head, "I mean, Wiper always told me to stop making them… Calling them useless trash…"

"You shouldn't! I mean, look at that hammer!" I pointed at the weapon, "No one I have ever known have ever create such a thing and _worked_! And you did, _all on your own_! The only other person who could have come up with such an idea that I've known of is Usopp, who created a weapon that can generate cool air, heated air and electricity!"

"Y-You really think this is amazing…?"

"Heck yeah!"

"Wow…" She muttered, "No one has ever said that about anything I have made before…"

"And I won't be the last." I snickered, "Wait till my captain see it. He'll be gushing all over it!"

"Is… that so…?"

I then felt a few more blips on my radar coming our way at fast speeds. I quickly grab Leva by the shoulders and jumped into the bushes.

"H-Hey, what are you-?!"

"SHH!"

I hushed her before peeking out of the leaves. A goat soldier like the ones we defeated a few moments ago skids past us followed by a couple others, "Quick! Back to God's Shrine! We must stop the Shandians from reaching God Eneru!" He commanded as the unit flew off into the distance. Once they are a good distance away, I step out of the bushes with Leva behind me.

"Did you hear him just now?"

"God's Shrine… I think I've overheard Wiper mentioning something like that before." Leva stated, "If I recall it right, it is at where the giant beanstalk is at."

"Beanstalk…" I seem to recall seeing a beanstalk on the old Skypiean map. I think it is where Nami pointed out where the City of Gold is. "I think that's the same place my crewmates are heading. Do you think that they might head there as well?"

"It's worth a gamble." She noted before looking around, "And I think it is about west of here. I've been near the area but never actually there."

"Lead the way." I tell her as we got back on her hammer and flew off towards our new destination.

* * *

It took us a good minute to reach where the beanstalk is. The very moment we reach the clearing of island cloud, we can see a few people already ascending the large plant. The giant beanstalk is… well… the first thing that pop into my head was the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. I mean, it looks like it was torn right out of the book and planted right there.

I immediately felt few familiar pings on my radar, Gan Fall, Zoro, Chopper who is have a rather weak presence, even Wiper too, as well as the two people we are searching for, "I found them! They are climbing up as we speak! And they got pursuers!"

"Then, we're heading after them!"

Leva accelerates our ride as we zoom across and above the ruins towards the large trunk of a plant, before making a sharp tip upwards along the trunk right behind the goat soldiers chasing Nami on her waver. We are slowly gaining up on them, then we break into the island cloud above. I nearly choked on the sudden flowing of cloud matter but I manages to hold onto the hammer for dear life.

When we broke surface, we are there to witness the soldiers collapsing onto the ground unconscious or dead. It looks like Wiper, Zoro and Gan Fall all taken care of them, but it would seem that the berserker has other opinions for Nami as I saw him points his bazooka right at the two on the waver.

"Ah! Wiper, wait!"

He fired despite Leva's warnings, Gan Fall only just managed get them out of the way of the blast. The hammer rider groaned as she flew off towards Gan Fall, "Aisa! Are you alright?"

"Leva?"

"Rein?! What are you doing here?!" Nami cried.

"Came after you!" I answered her, "Wait, what happened to the snake that was–"

" _ **TSULALALALA!"**_

Time froze as I saw the gaping mouth of the large reptile coming towards us, before in a snap closes up the jaw with us in it.

"GOD DAMNIT!" The next thing I knew, we are falling down what I assume to be its gullet before crashing into what seems to be solid ground.

The first thing I registered was the amount of pain on my back. Next was the surprisingly solid ground I am lying on, followed by the fact that I was swallowed. I got back on my feet, I saw the others doing the same, who are Nami, Leva, Gan Fall and Aisa. "Where are we?" Aisa asks.

"It seems we have been swallowed alive by the King of the Sky." Gan Fall pointed out.

"Ah! God!" The little girl cried before pulling out a shell on a stick and pointing at the old knight, which is then got yanked out of her little hands by Leva, "Hey! Give that back! God is there!"

"Not now." The older girl tells her, "Who knows what would happen if we try to burn our way through."

"Then we need to get out before we get digested." Nami stated, "I hope the waver isn't broken…"

"Although I find it odd to find solid ground inside a snake…" I pointed out tapping my heel on the piece of earth I'm standing on.

"At any rate, why are any of you here at all?!" Gan Fall cried, "Leva, I thought I asked you to protect their ship? And who is that little Shandian with you?!"

"This, right here," Leva patted Aisa on her head, "Is the person I was searching for, who is extremely stubborn about not returning home!"

"I told you! I came to save everyone!"

"And again, how?!"

"Not the time, you two!" Our navigator screamed at them, "Look, we need to find a way out of here quickly!"

"Maybe we could dig through its stomach…"

"Are you stupid?! That would only make it even more furious!" She screamed at the old knight, "Do you want to die or what?!"

"Ah… I-I was only joking…" He assures her with a tired sigh.

"Of course, you were! I'd like to see anyone who'd actually think that is a good idea–"

"OOH! Nami! Weird Geezer! Rein!"

Nami froze in her ranting, we all turn towards the source of that stupid-sounding voice to find… who else but our idiot dumbass of a captain, in slightly tattered clothes with a stick at hand. "What are you guys doing here in this mystery cave?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…Well, Nami, you asked." I pointed out, "Here's someone who might think of digging out of a giant snake's stomach is a good idea."

"Huh? Snake? What are you guys talking about?"

* * *

"Ah. I see… That's crazy!" Luffy nodded sagely once we explained our situation a few times to him, "Sucks to be you guys. To be swallowed by a snake of all things…"

"You're in the snake's stomach too, you idiot!" Nami shrieked pulling his rubbery cheek.

"Is such a man really your captain…?" Gan Fall asked me.

"Yeah… sometimes I wonder why I even join up with him in the first place…" I stated.

"He didn't even realize he got eaten…" Leva pointed out in disbelief, "I never think I would meet someone this stupid in my life…"

"Wait, so ALL of us are inside the snake's stomach?! I got eaten too?!" Our straw-hat captain cried out in shock, "Quick! We have to find its butthole now!"

"Where do think you are going out from?!" Nami cried dope-slapping his head with me.

"Well, we're eaten. So, the natural thing is to get out through its butt, right?"

"We are NOT coming out as fucking poop!" I screamed at his head pulling his ears and stretching it all the way. No way! Being naked is one thing, become feces is something I rather not live through at all!

"At any rate, we were probably swallowed because he was pissed off." The ginger navigator stated, "We should get out before it goes berserk again."

"Yeah, that would be for the best." Leva nodded, "Although it looked like it is suffering from stomach pains or… some… thing…"

It was then we came in a sudden realization of all the events that has occurred with the snake. We turned our attention to Luffy, I glaring right at his eyes with promise of death, "Luffy, were you rampaging around here for the past few minutes…?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. I was trying to dig my way out of here." He laughed, "At any rate, do any of you have anything to eat? I'm starving!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…What?"

"Nami." I turn to the navigator who is ready to throttle him, "Allow me." I turn back to our idiot captain before cracking my knuckles and pulling back…

"YOU FUCKING MORON OF A CAPTAIN!"

And let loose a sucker punch right into his face, a hit so hard that I actually send him flying into the air and slamming onto the stomach walls above. That in turn, with my rage completely subsided and replace with a fearful realization of what is going to happen, cause the entire stomach to twist and turn as we are all send spiraling around out of control.

"REIN!"

"I'M SORRY!"

I don't know how long the entire stomach have been spinning around like some weird off the wall carnival ride, but it must have been a quite a fucking while as I'm starting to get a little motion sick. And then, light starts to shine in from above as the gap where I assume its mouth is has opened up.

"Hey! Its mouth has opened up!" I informed them all.

"Ah! Then we must make haste! Quick! Get on your waver!" Gan Fall cried as he got his bearing and mounted Pierre's back, "We'll fly our way out of here!"

"Good idea! Everyone, grab on the waver!" Nami instructed us as she got on the vehicle, Luffy grabbing Aisa before grabbing onto the back of it. Me got on Pierre while Leva readies her hammer for lift off, "Hang on tight! We are getting out of here!"

And with a loud whoosh, we all took flight towards the light, but then I notice something, "Ah! Wait, Luffy and Aisa are still back there!"

"Crap! Aisa!" Leva cried before making a U-turn and flying back into the snake.

"Quick, Pierre! We must save those two!" Gan Fall instructed, before grabbing on my waist much to my shock and jumped off the bird with me on hand as we exited out of the snake mouth and-oh my god is the ground getting closer?!

"Ah! Are you falling?!" Nami cried.

"It would seem so." The old knight noted, before turning his attention to his mount, "Pierre! Don't worry about us! Take care of those two!"

"No wait! Don't listen to him!" I pleaded, "Come back!"

But my pleading was of no use as the three of us all crash landed onto thankfully a section of island cloud which manages to cushion our fall. I breathe a slight relief, glared at him a little before getting out of the old knight's grasp and taking in the scenery around me. I know exactly where we are.

Shandra, the City of Gold.

This is probably one of the only few moments I remember from this arc. And the architecture is reminiscence of Central America ruins, that of Aztec or otherwise, which matches Oda's drawing of it brick by brick. And its age is shown, from the growing vines and moss that covered the entire ancient city, to its stone buildings that are has somewhat decayed over what I assume to be several centuries.

But it is odd. The Shandra I recall from this arc is one with gold plating its buildings and streets. And yet, all I see is moldy stone buildings and streets.

Where's the gold?

" _ **TSU-LA LA LA~!"**_

The snake that swallowed us suddenly starts moving weirdly, like it is scooping the place for something, or someone? I think Nami said something but I'm too engrossed in receiving the slight emotions radiating off him, from happiness, to anxious, to excitement. But as its search went on, it turned to confusion, to worry, to realization, to finally… in large waves…

Sadness.

Loneliness.

Whatever that thing was search for, it didn't find it…

" _ **TSULALAAAAAAAAAAAA!"**_

And it let loose a loud cry that rivals Laboon.

But within a few seconds of its sadness, a large ball of sparking electricity shoots out above the poor reptile–

"EL THOR!"

And shoots down a large pillar of lightning that engulfs the large snake, shocking and burning the large animal with ease.

"OH NO! NAMI! REIN!"

"Huh? Zoro?" I turned to the swordsman who is apparently here as well, "You called?"

"Wait, Rein?!" He cried before looking next to me where Nami is kneeling behind the wall, "Nami too?! How did you guys get out?!"

"Well, we flew out."

"Oh? Why are Miss Navigator and Miss Dragon here too?" Robin, who is apparently been standing all this time, wonders.

"But then…" I pointed towards the charred and probably dead snake, "Luffy is still in there… I think… Most likely…"

"Wait, what?! What in four hells is he doing in there?!"

"I don't know! He was already in there when we got swallowed!"

"This is insane…" I heard Wiper stated, "The King of the Sky took several of my Burn Bazooka's blow with little of a scratch, and yet one lightning from Enel… And Aisa and Leva are still in that stupid thing…" And then, I felt his presence, or rather… I didn't notice his large sparky aura until just now and the berserker fired his weapon right at the proclaimed 'God'.

Enel of course easily dodges the attack before taking out a shell, Dial of sorts, and releases a large spherical white cloud into the air before landing on it with practiced ease, "Yahahaha, what was that for, Wiper?" He chuckles, "Such bad manners. That's no way to thank someone for returning you to your homeland."

"Enel…"

"Just wait a little longer. The game is not over yet."

"Game?"

"Yes, game. You, along with all those people behind you are all players of this little game of mine." He explained looking over all of us. Although, he winced when his eyes meet mine, "It is pretty simple! All you have to do is survive for the three hours of this war. Of course, I'm a player as well. There were some uninvited guests along the way, but it doesn't really matter. I predicted that only six would remain, and there is still three minutes left."

"Thus, it would be troubling to there are still seven survivors left. For you see, God's predictions mustn't be wrong. So! One of you here must be eliminated. Will you do it yourself? Or must I do it for you?"

"…Hey, do you want to?" Zoro asked Robin.

"No, thank you." She replied.

"Rein?"

"Not interested." Not dying a second time, no fucking way.

"Make that two of us."

"I don't think so." Wiper stated.

"I refuse as well!" Gan Fall added in.

We all nodded towards each other, before facing the proclaimed god with weapons drawn and pointing at him.

"YOU WILL!"

"…My, how impudent!" Enel laughed, "You all going to try and eliminate me? Yahahaha! I wouldn't expect less from the survivors of this game, but I fear you people still do not understand anything; of what God really is…"

I then took notice of the bandages on his shoulder, the very same shoulder that I have stabbed back on the Going Merry. The weight of Raitou on my hand is suddenly very apparent.

"An old man fighting for prosperity of Skypiea…"

"A warrior fighting to return to his homeland…"

"And pirates of the Blue Seas trying to steal the gold…"

"This world is filled with so many… troubled lambs…" He exclaimed, "Even the country itself has sinned greatly!"

"Enough nonsense out of you! Tell me what you truly seek to accomplish!" Gan Fall demanded, "And where the militia members are kept captive!"

"I seek to simply return, Gan Fall." Enel explained, much to the confusion of all of us. Return? What does he mean by that? He sighed before continuing, "You see, I have a place where I should be. On the Sky Island where I was born, where people say god lives. "

"People call it Fairy Vearth! Where there is limitless amount of Vearth! THAT is the ideal world I seek! That is what I deserve to have! This god's island, this puny piece of Vearth is NOTHING! And yet, you people have been fighting over it for centuries! Do you understand? The reason you fight is actually more philosophical. Think about it."

"Not a cloud, but born of the sky;"

"Not a bird, but lives in the sky;"

"This very country defies all laws of nature! Earth, Men, and God, all have their rightful place! Where they should belong!"

"…No!" Gan Fall seems to have come in a realization behind his words, "Y-You don't mean to… You can't!"

"Whatever you do mean by that? I'm doing my duties as a God!" Enel explained, "I'm sending all of you back to where you belong, below the sky!"

"Wait, what?!"

"You are mad! Do you plan on destroying your own country?!" The old knight exclaimed.

"It is the law of nature." The 'God' shrugged.

"Don't think so highly of yourself, Enel!" He screamed, "[God] is nothing but a title for the ruler of Skypiea!"

"That was before I became a GOD."

"This country, nay this WORLD, has no need of a GOD!"

"…Yahahaha, ex-God, Gan Fall… you are pretty worried for your militia, aren't you?" The proclaimed god chuckles, "Six years ago, all 650 of your followers have lost to my army. And they have finished their job just this morning."

"What are you–"

"Allow me to repeat myself for you. There are SEVEN survivors left." He stated, "Meaning, unfortunately, only seven of us remain standing on this island. No more, no less."

"W-Wha… y-you… you couldn't have…"

"Honestly, I didn't really want to." Enel chuckled, "But after I told them my plans, they went berserk on me! Yahahaha! I have no choice! It was self-defense!"

"B-But… then… their families on Angel Island…"

"Ah, yes. They do need burials preparations."

And I think I heard a visible snap of the old knight's hold on his rage, "ENEL!" Gan Fall charges towards him with lance raised and aimed for his heart. But the proclaimed god easily moved aside from the advancing lance as he toss his weapon into the air, before pointing his index fingers between the old man's head.

"Ten… Twenty million…"

"Gan Fall, dodge it, now!" I screamed at him.

"Thirty million volts." The god smirked before discharging lightning down on the old knight's head, "VARI!"

And with that, a bright light shone in front of us as I heard and smell the ozone in the air before it died down as fast as it lit up. And with that, Gan Fall collapses in front of us with face and tips of his beard and 'stache smoking with soot. "Gan Fall, there is a God of this world." Enel smirked, " _Me_."

"Devil Fruit!" Zoro exclaimed.

"Yeah, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit." I explained, " _Logia_ of Lightning."

"Logia?! And of lightning?!" Nami cried, "No… how are we going to win against that?!"

"Now." I can feel the smug off of him as he catches his golden weapon, "The predicted time has come. There are exactly six survivors. Congratulations! Good job surviving this far! Now all of you get to travel to Fairy Vearth with me!"

"Wait, what?!" Nami cried.

"Once we are there, I will create a new God's Land, one where only the ones chosen by me may live there! None of my previous followers were able to survive such a short game, they are deemed unfit!"

"And if we refuse?" Robin asked suddenly.

"Refuse? Why? I've already decided!" Enel stated, "If you stay here, you will fall into the abyss with this country!"

"True, with your power it is possible." She stated, "However, if you destroy this country, wouldn't that thing you want also fall as well?"

"You mean the golden bell?" He laughed, "YAHAHAHA! Don't worry about that, judging from your earlier adventures, there is only one place where the bell could be."

"A-Ah!"

"Right on the mark, aren't I?" He smirked, "You seem surprised! Do you really think you can think me and find it yourself? You clearly overestimated yourself. How shallow."

"Robin, move!"

"I _hate_ shallow woman."

I barely manages to get Robin out of the way just as Enel shoots an electric bolt right at where she stood, which is where I am standing right now. After some quick thinking on my feet, I stab my sword right into the ground in front of me. And with the desired effect, as the lightning bolt shoots into the sword and channels into the ground like a lightning rod.

"M-My lightning…" Enel muttered in shock.

"Grounding." I felt a nervous grin on my face, "The most effective method to defend against lightning."

"You… once again, you dare commit such sin to God…!"

"Once again?" Robin asked.

"That wound on his shoulder is caused by Raitou." I stated pulling my sword back out, "Thinking back, I manages to hurt Smoker that one time."

"So, your sword is something that can hurt Logia…" Zoro stated, "Good to know. Seems that we have an advantage against him."

"A sword that can cut God…" Wiper muttered, "As much as it hurts my pride, if it takes down Enel, I'll gladly give you my assistance!" He readied his Bazooka right at the proclaimed god, "But! I'll be the one who would have the killing blow! Got it?!"

"Sure, if I don't cut him up first." Our swordsman chuckled.

"Not the time, Zoro!" I tell him, "Wiper, I'll be counting on you!"

"Not only you refuse my invitation, but now you dare to challenge God too…?" Enel growled, "Unforgivable! Such sinners are not allowed on my new world!"

"We aren't interested with your stupid dream world!" Zoro shouted as he run towards him with me dashing behind closely sword poised and ready for attacks. He swings his blade right at Enel, the man letting Kitetsu slice through him, his lightning body sparks from the attack as he reconfigures back into his human form and prepared to send another thunderbolt at him. I took this moment to stab forward from behind Zoro with my blade aiming towards his chest.

The proclaimed god seem to react via blocking my blade with his golden pole, which began to spark which I took this instance to pull back just as he makes a grab for the hilt. Wiper, using this chance we provide for him, seems to fire his Burn Bazooka right at the god, causing him to stop his action all together before his body starts sparking.

"KALI!"

And he releases a loud thundercrack that repel both me, Zoro and the blast back. I am knocked down onto the ground on my back, I tried to get back up only to a long golden pole slams down right where at my throat is. "It would appear my previous punishment is too lenient for you. Not this time."

"Get off of her!" Zoro shouted as he swings Yubashiri right at him, Enel easily catches the blade in his hands before his entire body starts to release sparks again.

"I'll teach you all, the 'hopelessness' that you need to learn." He smirks as his sparks to increase in intensity, "With my overwhelming might, you will understand despair!"

I quickly scrapped my blade and tried to stab it into the ground-

"Forty million volts: VARI!"

But I couldn't make it as my entire vision is filled with light once again. The pain of letting an electricity current course through my veins isn't something I wanted to experience once again, but here I am, again. Not sure if I was screaming the whole time but once the light dissipates, I'm left conscious, surprisingly.

I can smell the soot coming out of my mouth and noses, the smell of toast and roasted meat from what seems to be my throat as well as the familiar metal pressure on my skin. My throat again?! I can't seem to catch a break with that! First Ace and now Enel?! Why does every Logia I meet always aim for my throat?! At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if Aokiji aimed to burn-freeze my throat too.

"I'm impressed. You actually remained awake this time." I can hear the smugness of his voice as he laughed, only capable of seeing blobs of varying colors in front of me at the moment.

"Y-You… asshole…"

"Now, now, this isn't a way to talk to a God." I then hear a grunt from Zoro and then something crashing onto the ground, " _This_ is how you speak to a God, groveling with your head to the ground. Now go on, beg. Pray. Worship my might and I may consider reissuing my invitation."

"I… pray… to… no one!"

"Hmph, stubborn sinner to the end, huh-Gurk!"

I hear a body slamming into another body, before I hear Enel speak once more, "What are you doing? A suicide attack now?"

"Have you heard of Sea Stone, Enel?"

"Sea… what?"

"I managed to found some and had them implemented into my skates." Wiper stated, "And from what I have overheard from some passing Blue Sea vessels, it seems to be the sole weakness of people like you."

"Y-You don't mean-Ah? T-This is… M-My strength… is…"

I feel the metal got off of me and with as much strength I can muster pull myself up and scrambled back a good distance away from the action. My foggy vision refocuses somewhat to a point I can see blurry figures of people, and of Wiper straddling Enel by the waist with his arm strength and palm pressed onto the proclaimed god's chest.

"Now, time to end this!"

"W-Wait, are you planning on using 'Reject'?! Your body can't take another use!" Enel commented, "Don't you want to live? If its this Vearth you want, I can give it to you–"

"Shut up! It's not about Vearth!" Wiper shouted as he prepared himself, "And if I can take you down, I'll gladly use my life!"

"No! Don't do it–"

"REJECT!"

And with a loud bang, whatever Dial Wiper used blasts right into Enel at point-black, and resulting aftershock sending the ground cracking and the dust clouds puffing out at all directions. As the dust clears, the berserker Shandian stood over the dead God, finally victorious.

"Is he dead?" Nami commented all of the sudden. Oh, she is still there, behind the wall.

"It would seem so." Zoro stated.

"I don't know what Wiper used, but whatever it is did the trick." I sighed in relief, "It's finally over–"

*KZUM*

*KZUM*

I paused as I saw the horror of what is conspiring in front of me. Enel, dead as he is, is using his lightning powers to restart his own heart, like a fucking defibrillator!

You got to fucking kidding me! Even that suicide attack isn't enough to take that fucker down?!

That asshole of a God, after a few more good shocks to his chest, got back up and wipe the blood off his lips with a smug smirk, "I got admit, that was a good attempt." He chuckled, "But it isn't enough to stop the might of God."

"No… it can't…" Wiper mumbles out before coughing out blood and dropping to his knees panting in pain.

"It is like I said, Warrior Wiper." Enel smirked, "You are no match for me. Now look at you. Such a pitiful-"

"Don't you dare…"

"Hm?"

"Don't you dare call me name lightly!" The berserker screamed out as he struggles to get back up, "800 years ago… The proud warriors of Shandora… Valiantly fought to protect this city… *huff**huff* And we… the Shandians… are their descendants…! Having inherited the blood and will of the great warrior Calgara… in whose time our land was suddenly stolen… I, like the generations before me the past 400 years… has set this place… as my lone objective…!"

"800 years…?!" I heard Robin gasp in shock.

"And at long last… I've finally reached it!" He places a steady foot down, as he raised his body back up, "But you're in my way!"

"…" Enel, without a word, spun his golden pole and with one swift strike break one of Wiper's skates, dropping the berserker back onto the ground, "You know, I really felt that last hit, Wiper. It was a dumb trick, using a Sea Stone like that. Normally, using a Reject Dial will kill the person at its first use. It is impressive you are still standing even after repeated use."

"But, unfortunately…" Enel smirked as he drums one of the… drums on his back with his rod, "You couldn't have picked a worst opponent. Thirty million volts…" His drum glows and sparks before forming into what resembles a bird, "HINO!" The large lighting bird flew out of the drum, before flew straight and through the berserker, shocking and burning him into a charred crisp.

I then saw Zoro taking this chance to rush forward while grabbing a shard from Wiper's skate, "Well, it's do or die!"

"You too?" The proclaimed god sighs before thumping the other drum, "KITEN!" which forms into a large wolf shaped from lightning, which bites onto the swordsman, sending yet another current of deadly electricity through him. He shook on the spot before collapsing back onto the ground in a smothering body.

"Mister Swordsman!" Robin cried.

"Oh yeah, you haven't got your punishment yet."

And with that, before I can blink a large bolt of lightning shoots out and through the archeologist, knocking her out and onto the ground.

"Robin! You…!" I growled as I raised my sword up. He is an impossible foe, and even if my blade can hurt him, he can easily take me out in a split second I can move. It could be the end of me.

"One last chance, woman." He stated, "Repent."

But you know what? I have several near deaths throughout this adventure. What's more one more, especially towards a guy like him.

"Fuck. You."

And with that, light fills my vision once more.

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Done! Finally finished! Another chapter finished as a way to make up for the long hiatus from the last chapter. And with a cliff-hanger at the end there!**

 **I first like to say thank you for all those that have favourited and followed this story since its conception. I am really proud of this, and to see so many people enjoy reading this, brings a slight tear to my eye.**

 **Also, 100 reviews! My first fic to have a hundred reviews! I can't believe I have made it this far! Not sure if it is due to the fact that One Piece fanfics are more popular then my other fics, but either way, it is an amazing milestone for me to have.**

 **But I am so glad to have so many people excited about this.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	29. Ch 29:Ringing the Golden Bell!

**Chapter 29: Ringing the Golden Bell!**

* * *

In the ruins of Shandora, the City of Gold, there lay a large snake body. That large snake that was once the apex predator that has been defeated by God Enel, still lay there on one of the stone ruins.

The large reptile lay still, before its eyelids opened. While still blank from it lack of conscious, its pupils budged out for a moment before closing again. And then, they opened once more, this time the two figures behind the lid is shown, Luffy in one of them holding it up. He punched the pupil a bit more, just as Aisa is seen walking to him with Leva behind her. The three talked, argued a little, before closing the eyelid.

A few moments later, the snake flinched a little, before its jaws slacked opened, releasing its captives plus a horse-bird out of its mouth with a loud thud. Leva groaned as she felt her sore behind, before looking around with a sigh of relief.

"We're finally out…" She sighed, "Any longer, and I may seriously consider Gan Fall's joke suggestion…"

"But… where are we?" Aisa asked.

"OOHH!"

The two of them turned to the direction of the loud voice, before following him up the stairs of the stone monument to the top, where the pirate captain declared with a loud, "I'M OUT! I'M FINALLY OUTSIDE! And look at this place! It's HUGE! Where is this place?! Is it the city ruins?! Oh! Maybe that golden bell is here too!"

Leva, mostly ignored the loud outburst of the straw-hat captain, took in the view before realising, "Is this… are we in Shandora…?"

"Our homeland?" Aisa commented.

"It would seem so…" She nodded, "It definitely felt familiar…" She looked around, the mossy stone and the ruined buildings all around, "This is the land our ancestors are desperate to return to… But why come back here…? There's nothing but moss and vines…?"

As she is busy thinking, Luffy suddenly leaped off the top of the building and running down the streets, "Ah! Luffy! Where are you going?!" Aisa cried.

"Quick, let's follow him!"

The two Shandian girls, with assistance of that horse-bird Pierre, made it down the building and have reach up to where the pirate is going, "Hey! Why did you run… off…?" They slow to a stand as they stood there rooted to the ground at the sight in front of them.

There, on the stone grounds, are several charred bodies lying there, clear work of Enel's doing. Luffy is right now up to one of the bodies, shaking it with a scared and worried expression on his face, "Zoro! Hey, wake up! What are you doing?! How could this have happened…?! Wait, where's Nami?! I don't see her anywhere!"

Leva manages to get back her bearings as she quickly scanned around in hope of finding any of her own. She then took notice of the large hole on the ground, and took a look, only to discover something horrible.

"WIPER!"

She quickly slides down the hole, Aisa not too far behind, as she ran up to the supposed charred body of one of her closest family, "Wiper! H-How could this…?!"

"Ah! It's that bazooka jerk!" Luffy commented, "He was pretty strong too… but even he was beaten!"

"It's Enel! It can only be him!" Aisa cried.

"Enel? Is that the god?"

"I couldn't use my Mantra at all while we were inside that snake…" She stated sadly, "So I can't say for certain what happened here, but…" She clenches her fist tightly, "It's definitely Enel! Only he could have done this!"

"It's too cruel…" Leva mumbled angrily.

"Ugh…"

They all turn to the slightly groaning archaeologist who is struggling out some words, "Robin!" Luffy quickly run up to her, "What happened?!"

"*pant* Miss Navigator… she has been taken away…"

"W-What?!" He cried before lifting her up slightly, "H-Hey, talk slowly… so Nami was taken away by that god-dude?! To where?!"

"I don't know… But listen closely…" She panted out, "At this rate… this land… Skypiea will be destroyed…!"

"The Sky Island will be WHAT?!"

"E-Even our village?!" Aisa cried.

"Yes, everything…" Robin gasped out, "Enel… he aims… to return all the people living in the sky… back to the surface… But if you hurry… to where the Golden Bell is… you might… be able… to stop him…"

"The Golden Bell?! That's where he's headed?!" Luffy asked.

"Yes, I'm certain of it…" She nodded, "But we have no time to wander about… if you miss your chance to find him…"

"Don't worry!" The young Shandian girl assures her, "I can tell! I sense two voices moving across this island. They must be Nami, and Enel!"

"Good. Take me there!" The pirate captain commanded.

"I'll head back to warn the village!" Leva stated as she climbs onto her hammer before turning to Pierre, "Bird, I'm counting on you to keep Aisa safe!"

"Pieere!"

"Alright! Aisa, be careful." She warned her once more before igniting the Dial and flew up out of the ruins.

* * *

A quick flight with a short stop to reload, she made it back to where the Shandian Village is hidden. She quickly leaps down through the hidden entrance covered by the island clouds and head towards the Chief's main tent, ignoring the other adults asking where she been and where is Aisa as well as telling her to stop. She tuned them all off as she marched right up to the Chief in the sitting inside his tent.

"Oh? Leva, you have returned? Where's Aisa? Did she not come back with you?"

"Chief, forgive me rudeness, but we need to evacuate the entire village right away!" She tells him urgently.

"Hm? And pray tell why?" He asked.

"Enel is planning on eradicating all of Skypiea!" She cried as panic starts to bleed into her tone, "He's going to destroy everything, including this village!"

"What you say?!"

"The entire Skypiea?!"

"Is that even possible?"

"And where did you hear that from?" The Chief asked.

"From the Blue Sea pirates that faced off against Enel himself." She explained, "And I assure you, they are telling the truth! They have no reason to lie!"

"But if that is true, where can we even go?!"

"Even if we evacuate, our homes will be gone! We'll have nowhere else to go!"

"How could this have happened…?"

"We're doomed… We're all doomed!"

"Everyone, calm down!" Chief commanded, the commotion died down to silence before he issues his orders, "Prep and ready all available wavers! Gather all your belongings and began the evacuation! Make sure no man, woman or child are left behind! All those who are able, help out any elderly too!"

"C-Chief…!"

"NOW!"

Everyone shut up and get to work, most of the men rushing towards the port while the rest all start to spread the word. Leva turned to the Chief, he looked at the young girl with a small grim smile, "If what you say is true, then you might have saved the entire village. So please, help out with the evacuation."

"Y-Yes, Chief!" She nodded before rushing off to help an elderly woman with her bags.

The leader of the Shandians turns to the large statue situated in the middle of the village square, 'Oh great warrior Calgara… please grant us the will to survive this great disaster…'

* * *

The first thing I felt when I regain consciousness, is the softness of the cloud on my back, along with the return of the pin and needles all over my limps. The next thing, would be that I start hearing thunder rumbling through the skies, as well as loud cracks of lightning happening at rapid succession.

I barely managed to open up one of my eyelids, my blurry vision refocused to the dark storm clouds above. Huh… I'm alive…?

"Ah! Miss Dragon! Mister Swordsman!"

"Weird old man!"

I turn my glance in the direction of that voice, "Robin…?"

"Great! You guys are up!" I hear Usopp cried out, "We barely have enough time! Can any of you walk?"

"Give me… a few moments…." I groaned out.

"Then let's hurry to the ship." The archaeologist stated, "There's nothing we can do even if we stay here."

I grunted as I struggled to get back on my feet, my body is hardly listening to my commands. Did Enel's attacks affect my nerves somehow? I barely got onto my knees, when I hear Usopp cried out in panic, "Oh crap! He's not holding anything back at all! We gotta run away! This really is the end of everything!"

I just manage to get my feet steady on the island cloud when it happened.

A large lightning bolt blasts right down behind us, knocking me back onto the ground face-first. "FUCK!" I let loose a swore as I tried to get back up again. This is already difficult without the lightning!

"Wiper! Aisa!"

I heard a loud voice called out, I turned my head over to see something coming towards us at top speed. From the sounds it is making, it must be a waver, with who I can gathered to be Leva driving. She skids the large waver to a stop in front of us panting tiredly, the vehicle resembling what I believe to be a mix between a motorboat and a car with herself in what resembles a driver seat.

"Leva?! What are you doing back here?!" Aisa cried.

"I came to get you guys out of here!" She tells her, "Also, the village is safe! We manage to evacuate everyone before Enel began his rampage! The only people left are you guys and the other unconscious warriors! The others are collecting them as we speak."

"That's perfect!" Usopp cried, "Let's get on that waver and get out of here!"

"No… Not yet!" I manage to strain my voice out. It has not rung yet… If I remember the climax of this arc right, Luffy WILL ring the golden bell. It is only after that bell is rung that this arc will end. If we leave before then… who knows what kind of changes will happen?!

"What do you mean, 'not yet'?!" The sniper screamed at me, "We have a ticket out of this hell-forsaken place! Once Nami get Luffy, we should–!"

"No! The bell!" I coughed out, "Luffy hasn't ring the bell yet!"

"The… bell…?" Gan Fall asked.

"You know where the bell is too?" Robin asked.

"J…Just the gist of it…" I stated, "If I recall correctly, at the top of this beanstalk is where the golden bell of Shandora is. Unless Luffy rings that bell, this fight with Enel is not over."

"The golden bell…" Wiper muttered, "It's at the top of this beanstalk…?"

"Who cares about that stupid bell?!" Usopp cried, "If we don't get out soon, we all going to die! We need to move, now!"

"Hey, Wiper! Wait!"

We all turned to the sounds of panic as we see Wiper trying to head toward the beanstalk while Leva and Aisa are pushing him back, "Wiper! You are in no shape to climb!" The older girl cried, "Even if you did, there's no way you can catch up to Enel up there!"

"Get out of my way!" He growled.

"Hey! Everyone, get away from that stalk!" Usopp cried out, just as the large tip of the plant dropped and crashing down a good few meters in front of us.

"That's the tip of the stalk!" Robin stated in shock, "What's happening up there?!"

"H-Hey! Y-You don't think Luffy's corpse also fell down, did you?!" The sniper stated in a panic.

"No, he's still up there…" I muttered, my Observation radar re-establishing itself. Yup, Luffy is still up there.

"See! Didn't I tell you?!" Leva pointed out as she watches over Wiper struggling to get back up.

"It's just up above me…!" He growled out as he picks himself up, "The great bell… the great warrior Calgara desperately tried to ring…!"

"HEY! What's that?!"

From Usopp's cry, we all looked over the horizon in a mix of confusion and horror. The dark clouds have opened up as a large black ball of thunderclouds descends down onto the cloud sea. And then, with a loud crack, it discharges into an explosion of pure electricity, before dissipating into nothing.

"W-What was that explosion just now?!" Our sniper screamed in fright, "And the rain of lightning is not stopping! I-I don't think we can make it out of here alive!"

"Don't tell me…! He destroyed the entire Angel Island…?!" Gan Fall muttered in pure horror, before dropping his face into his palms, "How…?! How can you be so wicked, Enel?!"

"Why do you think Luffy would ring that bell, Miss Dragon?" Robin asked me.

"He would want to, for Cricket's sake." I stated, the pins and needles plaguing my limps long gone by now, although I still feel like I'm hungover.

"Come to think of it…" Zoro voices out, "When we were trekking, Luffy has mentioned about ringing that bell once… something about letting someone hear it…"

"Yeah, he did… but considering the current situation, do you really think he would do it?" She asked.

"He will." He stated firmly, "Luffy's the kind of person who does what he says he'll do. Even if Nami went up there to bring him back, he's definitely not coming down. Because right now, he and Enel are aiming for the same thing."

"Ah! Something else is falling down!" Usopp suddenly screamed as we all looked upwards, indeed something else came falling down towards us. But instead of the tumbling of the tip of the stalk, it is floating down slowly. "Look out! It's a giant leaf-wait what…?"

The giant leaf lands softly on the island cloud, on it written something, "Ah! It's a message from Luffy and Nami!" Aisa pointed out.

"What does it say?"

"… 'Make this giant stalk… Fall over, westwards.'?" Robin reads out.

"W-What?! What's that going to do?!" The sniper cried, before we all hear the loud rumbling noise before he snapped out in horror, "AH! L-L-Look over there!" We all followed his gaze, and we too froze in horror.

"Enel…!"

"Y-You fiend…!"

In the air, the cloud has parted away, revealing the same large black ball floating down only it is larger than previous one. With the size of it as well as directly on top of us, and with my mental comparison from the previous attack, it could completely destroy everything, including the cloud seas that are supporting everyone up here.

"This is bad…" Robin pointed out, "If that detonates, we might really fall out of the sky…"

"This is bad! Really, really, bad!" Usopp cried, "What do we do?! There's no way to run now!"

"…Hey, guys." I then noted out the boat's general direction from us, "That large ship, it's west from where we're standing, right?"

"Yeah. Your point?" Gan Fall asked.

"Wait a minute…" Zoro seems to realise what I meant, "Are you suggesting that they are planning on using the beanstalk as a ramp to try to reach Enel?"

"Wait, WHAT?!" The sniper cried out, "A-Are you serious?!"

"It's the only possible explanation for that message." I stated.

"T-That's crazy! Can they even make it like that?!"

"It doesn't matter if they can do it or not right now." Zoro stated firmly, "The only thing we can do is to help them try."

I then saw a vision flash for a second before calling out to them, "Everyone! Get away from the beanstalk, NOW!" And just as I manage to finish that sentence, several lightning bolts strike down right behind us. I just barely just got away a few trail sparks nearly skimmed on my leg.

Zoro manages to grab an unconscious Chopper(Was he unconscious the whole time?) before tossing him to the archaeologist, "All of you, take cover somewhere with solid footing! If we stay here, we'll fall along with the ruins if we stay here!"

"Good plan!" The sniper noted before grabbing the unconscious Sanji and ran back into the forest along with Leva who has Aisa in her grasp as they dashed after the others with their waver.

"Now, we just have to make that stalk fall towards that ship, right?" The swordsman pointed out.

"That's the plan, yes." I nodded, "We have to. Luffy is probably the only one that can fight Enel right now."

"Got it!"

He then dashes off towards the beanstalk with hand in his sword. After dodging a few stray lightning bolts that came really close to him, he manages to reach the large plant and with a quick slash, cut a good chunk off it.

"Yes! He did!"

But just everyone cheered for his accomplishment, a large lightning bolt thunders down right at him and frying him up again. I sense his aura, so he is still alive, as he tumbles down the plant into the ruins below. "Zoro!" Usopp cried out, "Good thing he was able to cut off the beanstalk…!"

"No, that's not enough…" Robin pointed out.

I took a second look, and realised she was right. Despite a huge chunk of the plant cut off, the giant beanstalk is still steady and rooted firmly. Shit, is it not enough?!

"Then I'll-Grk!" I fell back down onto my knees when I tried to run. My legs feel so numb… They are so heavy…

It was then, the cloud part suddenly shook much to Usopp's surprise, "What's that?! A cloud-quake?! Oh wait, is the beanstalk now going to…?!" The giant plant has started tilting a bit, before stopping a few angles later.

"No, it's not enough…" The archaeologist stated, "We need a bigger impact to fall it."

"Impact…" Leva muttered.

"Ah! Wait, Wiper!" I hear Aisa cried as I took notices the berserker getting back up with a growl.

"Be quiet!" He shouted as he stumbled forward, "That bell… only the successors of Calgara's will may ring it! What connection Straw Hat have with it!"

"Ignore him." Usopp huffs, "He's half-dead already… he can't do anything to us. More importantly, we gotta focus on bringing that stalk down! Luffy and Nami are waiting up there! Zoro already chopped off one of the vines, so…" He puts down his goggles in ready, "I, CAPTAIN USOPP, will use my new 'Dance of the Fire Stars' and bombard that beanstalk until it falls! Bare witness to my true power!" He roared out as he charges towards the large plant.

"Hey, wait–!"

"400 years ago, an explorer from the Blue Seas said that he found a golden city." Robin explained to the berserker, "But… no one believed him. Everyone called him a liar. However, his descendants believes him and has been searching it even now. Ringing that golden bell will tell the descendant below that the city is up here in the sky. Or that's what Straw Hat believes. Isn't it a lovely reason?"

"Such romance, even in this desperate situation. He would throw away his chance to escape for this… What a strange man."

Ignoring the lightning striking behind us, Wiper ask, "What is… that descendant's name?"

"Montblanc Cricket."

"Then…" I start to hear subtle sobs under his firm tone, "Was the name of his ancestor… Noland?"

"Yes." She nodded.

"Wiper…?" Aisa asked worriedly.

I turn to the man, with tears flowing down his eyes. He clenches his fists tightly, his eyes steadied to a determined gaze as he prepared to step forward-

Only to get stopped when a pair of hand grabbed onto his palm and ripped out a black Dial out of the bloodied bandages. And with then, Leva with that Dial in her hands, dashes past everyone with what seems to be blunderbuss with a metal compartment behind the igniting mechanism and a few metal rods tied to its barrel as well as a spring mechanism in the buttstock in her hands and her hammer on her back.

"Leva, wait!" Wiper cried as the girl keep running towards the beanstalk, "If you use that Dial…!"

"This is what I create as an alternate way to use Impact Dials!" She called out, "If I use this, the recoil of the Reject Dial might lessen!"

"That's not what I meant-!"

"And if you use Reject again, you'll die!" She screamed out as she got blast aside when a lightning bolt strikes really close to her. She tumbles about for a moment, before picking up her rifle and continues onward, "We have lost too many people already! And you… I don't want to lose you too!"

"Leva…"

"You are my idol!" I hear her screamed out, "I wanted to be like you! But I wasn't able to…! So please… Let me do this! Allow me to help!"

"That idiot…" The berserker growled, "You've already helped out more than enough…"

* * *

'Okay, okay… this is it…! Game time…!' Leva thought in panic, 'Right… This was a stupid idea in hindsight, but…'

She nearly screamed as she barely dodged a lightning, rolling into safety before continue running.o

'Okay… run through the preparation procedure… Open the compartment… Place the Dial with firing face facing the barrel… Cock the firing lever…' She mentally run through as she followed the instruction, 'Okay! Set up and ready to fire… Now… to get close… this is gonna suck…'

"HYAH!"

She starts to hear the voice of the long nose gunner, who is firing shot after shot at the beanstalk with no results.

"Heh…heh… damn it! What kind of beanstalk is that…?! Fine! This time I'll use three shot–"

"Wait!"

"Huh?"

She rushed past him, before with a leap up onto the stalk and pressed her hammer with an additional boost upward onto the plant. She then pressed her rifle onto the plant's trunk, before she pressed a button on the metal rod which causes it to slides outwards and stabs into the plant, keeping it steady.

"Okay… now…"

"H-Hey, what are you doing?"

"Firing Reject… NOW!"

She squeezes the trigger, her weapon recoiled really hard into her shoulder, the force nearly dislocated that joint. Leva clutches her teeth in pain, as the force of the Reject Dial blasts out of the barrel which warped for a second before shattering into pieces, but the released impact blasts into the plant, breaking the flora fibre via the force into a large hole.

She gasps out in pain before tumbling backwards onto the clouds, holding the broken remains of her weapon.

"W-What was that?!" The gunner screamed out in shock.

'Fall… Please…' She growled before screaming out, "BREAKKKKKKKKKK!"""

And… with that, the large plant starts breaking under the lack of hold, and finally falling downwards towards the ship.

* * *

I gasped as the giant plant starts falling, "It's falling!" Usopp shouting out as he ran back towards us with Leva on his shoulder.

"You did it, Leva!" Aisa cheered.

"Go for it, Luffy!" I screamed out.

And then, lightning starts to thunders down right below where the beanstalk. I then saw vision after vision of lightning nearly hitting us a few times, before pushing my legs to my limit and grabbed the two closest people next to me, who are Aisa and the unconscious Chopper, and rushes into the forest.

I don't know how long the lightning keep going, but I manage to keep safe from them. When the lightning storm ended and we all somehow or other manages get out of the way of the large falling beanstalk.

But even with the lightning gone, the danger of the giant black ball still remains as it starts falling down towards us. And then… I start to see visions again, but not of the future but of our adventures up till now.

Baratie…

Arlong Park…

Loguetown…

Twin Capes…

Whiskey Peaks…

Little Garden…

Drum Kingdom…

Alabasta…

Jaya…

Is this… truly the end…?

And then, I felt an aura entered into the large ball orb. I know this aura… this fun-loving and determined soul… And then… the black orb sparks out of control, before finally explodes out in the air with a loud roar from our fearless captain.

I felt the tension released from my body as tears start to build up at the edge of my eyes. I smirked before screaming out, "DEFEAT THAT LIGHTNING BASTARD, LUFFY!"

"GOOO!" All my crewmates screamed out.

"RING IT, BRAT!" Wiper screamed out, "LIGHT THE FLAME OF SHANDORA!"

"Yes… my young friend…" Gan Fall muttered, "Let us hear the song of the island once more!"

And then, after a few tensed moments later, I finally hear it.

* _GONG~!_ *

* _GONG~!_ *

* _GONG~!_ *

I stood still as I hear the sound of the large golden bell. I couldn't hear what my other crewmates has said about this, or that if our unconscious crewmates have wake up or not. The ringing echoed into my ears, filling me with an emotion I don't know how to describe it.

It just… can't be described out in words…

This would be difficult to write this in the logbook…

* * *

In the blue seas, on the Grand Line…

On the island of Jaya, in the pirate haven of Mock town, in a random tavern, there sat on the couch is a familiar hyena-themed pirate with his crew sitting around.

Bellamy clenched his teeth with bandages wrapped around a good half of his face, while the bell ringing is echoing from the sky. "This is shit…! Full of shit!" He shouted as he slams his glass into the ground which shattered on impact.

"B-Bellamy, calm down…!"

"Don't tell me to calm down!" He screamed as he punches that crewmember in the face, "This isn't real… I won't believe it! I won't admit that stupid dreamer is real!"

"Montblanc Noland is a liar! He is! Will always be! This is just a fake sound! I bet that stupid old man is just faking that sound–"

"Hey."

He stopped his rant when a hand lands on his shoulder. He growled, before turning around to punch whoever the hand belongs to and landing a good hit into the man's cheek. He keeps his hit there, before confusion floods his face as the man he punches didn't move, or even flinched.

The man glared down at the hyena, as the fist left the cheek. "What did you say Montblanc Norland is?"

"Huh? What, are you like that dreamer geezer?" Bellamy asked with a smirk, "Don't tell me you believe that Norland really found a City of Gold too?! Man, all these ridiculous dreamers are coming out of the woodworks…" He turned to him, one of his shin turns into a spring which he pressed down tightly, "Allow me to demonstrate how we deal with such fools in this town."

The spring unravelled and launches into his knee towards his gut, but then he was hit in the face all of the sudden that knocks him out of the window and into the streets. Bellamy groaned as he felt his bruised and broken nose. He didn't see his attack at all. What was he hit by? A punch? A kick?

"So, you hate dreamers, right?" The man stepped out of the tavern, his ruby eyes glaring into his opponent, no… _prey_ , "Well, I like to point out some things."

"Number one: Those dreams you say are stupid are only stupid because you think they are stupid."

"Number two: People who are willing to go that far for their dreams aren't stupid. They are just willing to do something nobody are willing to do. _That_ is not stupidity."

"And finally, number three:" He steps in front of the hyena, the pirate's eyes wide in fear as Sen glares down at him, "That Montblanc Noland guy you said is a liar? He is not a liar, and he is my good friend."

"E-Eh–?"

"And I don't like people badmouthing my friends."

With that, his fist blurs as he sends a fist into Bellamy's face, sending him flying into the wooden house behind him, before blasting through it and blasting into the other one and so forth, until he lands on the opposite end of the town near the edge of the forest, a fist-mark indented into his nose and skull.

Sen breathes out a sigh of content before shaking his hand free of blood, "That felt good."

He turned to the skies, as the ringing continues onwards. His mind goes back all those centuries ago, when he first met that explorer.

" _Huh? You want me as a guide?" He asked the acorn-headed man._

" _Yeah! Isn't that what you are providing?" Montblanc Noland asked._

" _Admiral, come on. It's probably a con." One of the sailors behind him pointed out, "I mean, I doubt anyone has been able to guide anyone through those seas."_

" _Well, any help counts." The admiral smiled._

" _Your crew might be right, you know." Sen stated from his spot on the road, "I might be conning you out of your money."_

" _You won't." Noland stated, "No conman would have proclaimed with as much pride as you have. You know a lot about the Grand Line, don't you? If so, please join us on our voyage! With your information, we might make it further and find more land that may be beneficial for everyone!"_

"… _You're not going to accept no for an answer, are you?"_

" _Well, no. You may refuse. We'll just go on a voyage without you then!"_

"… _Since you really insisted… Oh well, I'll come along."_

A single tear flows down the side of the cheeks as he looked up into the sky with a bright smile, "You hear that, Noland? The Shandians are doing fine. Calgara's descendants are doing fine."

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **There! Finished the next chapter! Sorry if this chapter seems really patched together. I just want to end this arc as soon as possible. And yes, Sen is the Ryujin as written in Noland's logbook.**

 **Now I'm betting your next question will be: 'If he is, then wouldn't he have known that Shandora is up in the skies? That the golden bell is up there too?'**

 **And here's my answer: Where was it written that he didn't know?**

 **Anyways, yes, the climax of this arc is coming to an end. Seriously, dealing with this arc is a bigger pain in the ass than I thought… Especially with Rein's involvement in this…**

 **Now then, after this, is the aftermath along with the next coming and dreaded, Davy Back Fight arc…**

 **Oh… I'm going to tear my hair on this, I am sure of it.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	30. Ch 30:Retrieving the Gold

**Chapter 30: Retrieving the gold**

* * *

I sighed as I sat down on one of the ruins, as Chopper is fixing up Zoro. I fiddled with the bandages around my limps and body as I hear the doctor pretty much lecturing the swordsman on getting injured so many all of the time. Robin is out sitting a good distance away, far enough to not be included but near enough to hear anything we discuss. The classic wallflower move.

After the ringing of the golden bell ended, we all make our way down back into the ruins of Shandora to get Zoro as Wiper, Leva and Aisa all went back with their fellow villagers. With now Sanji and Chopper are back up and conscious, we all are standing by while discussing what to do next considering that the City of Gold we are looking for is just gold in name now.

"What now?" Zoro asked as the reindeer doctor bandages him up, "This City of Gold has no gold left to its name now."

"So, the golden bell…"

"Yeah. Sank into the cloud sea, most likely." Usopp tells our cook, "Enel's gold-plated ark is probably gone now too."

"Guess we're back to being broke-ass pirates." I chuckled dejectedly.

"I personally am more interested in those Dials than gold." The sniper pointed out, "We can't find anything like them down in the Blue Seas! All the upgrades I can perform!"

I turned over to Robin, I feel same shimmer of dejection and sadness coming off of her. Is she that upset over the severe destruction of the Shandora ruins?

"HEYYYYYY!"

We all turned to the sound of that voice, as we saw Luffy, Nami and Conis all running towards us with what seems to be a large sack of something dragging along behind them. "AH! Nami-swan~! Conis-swan~!" Sanji swooned.

"Thank gods you are all alright!" The angel sobs out, "I was so worried…! But I couldn't do anything about it…!"

"OH~! Conis-swan~ You were cared so deeply about me~?!" The cook cooed as he spins around in his love tornado.

"That's not she meant." Usopp deadpanned.

"Where did you get all this food?" I asked curiously. That amount must be hard to find in these parts of the island.

"We found it in a priests' storehouse inside the forest." Nami explained before Luffy added on with glee, "There's still a lot more in there!"

"How do you guys even get down safely from all the way up there?" The sniper asked them.

"With a Gum-Gum Balloon!" Our captain explained while flashing a peace sign.

"Oh, that reminds me…" Zoro pointed out, "What happened with your dad, Conis?"

"Ah! H-He…" She turned away with a downtrodden expression on her face, "He… tried to protect me… But then, Enel…"

I then realized what happened, before walking up to her and enveloped her in a tight hug. "I'm sorry for your loss…"

"Oh, Conis…"

"You poor thing…"

"I am truly sorry, Conis…"

…

…

…

Wait a minute…

"WAIT, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT YOU!" Pretty much everyone except for me and Conis screamed out pointing the supposedly dead Pagaya just standing there nonchalantly.

"Ah! S-Sorry for being still alive!"

"Don't apologize!" I screamed at him, before letting the angel go and embrace her father sobbing grateful tears.

* * *

"You fell down into White-Sea below?" Nami pointed out.

"Yes, I'm sorry about that." Pagaya nodded as his daughter sobs away on his lap, "When I came to, I realized I had fallen one level below. Actually, right now, people who had escaped down into the White-Seas have made a new path using the Milky Dials and are now returning up here one by one. But with Angel Island now gone… they are all coming to Upper Yard."

"So, both Skypieans and Shandians are on the same patch of ground they were fighting over for the past few centuries…" I pointed out.

"That's not good…" Nami stated.

"Ah, who cares right now?" Luffy laughed as he takes out another meat on a bone from inside the sack, "I'm hungry! Let's eat!"

"…I guess we will think about it some more after we have dinner." Zoro stated before popping opened a bottle of ale and chugging it down.

We all followed suit as food are distributed among all of us and have our meal right there in the moldy stone ruins of a once golden city. There are some skirmishes here and there with Luffy trying to steal most of the food, but at the end of our improv meal, the sun has set and the full moon has risen up high above us.

Now that I've looked more closely, the moon does seem to be bigger than normal when we are below in the Blue Seas. Maybe because of the distance between us and it are shorter due to us being on a sky island?

"Whoo~ Boy, I am stuffed." Usopp sighed in delight.

"It's already so late." Sanji noted.

"What do we do now? Head back to the ship?" Nami suggested.

"What? Nami, what kind of crazy talk is that?!" Our captain pointed out.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" She asked.

"She STILL doesn't realize it, Usopp." Luffy told our sniper, who shook his head rather disappointedly.

"Yeah, she's a failure as a human being alright." He stated.

"What the hell does that mean?!"

"Is it not obvious?" The captain stated with a wide grin, "At nights like this! When camping outside, we have to get a campfire going all night! Zoro, Sanji, prepare the firewood!"

"On it."

"AGAIN?!"

"Is this normal for people down at in the Blue Seas?" Conis asked us curiously.

"Nah, it's more a Straw Hat thing than anything else." I explained to her.

* * *

A blur of events later, we managed to get a large bonfire going. For some reason, some Skypieans has notices our little tribe party and joined in with the festivities with cheering and singing. And then, even some Shandians has appeared, curious of our large party and the huge bonfire that has built up with few more logs.

At first, the two opposing cultures stared down at each other with glaring animosity, especially some of the Shandians who are reaching for their weapons in preparation for a fight.

But with Luffy's insistence (He basically asked them why they aren't singing or dancing, that this is a party and they need to sing and dance.), the two set aside their bloody past and went on with the festive mood.

Slowly, but surely, the two sides really start let go of past grudges and starts truly happily dance and laugh, talking to each other like old friends. A Skypiean woman gossiping with a Shandian about small things, drinking contest between the two races, there are even some flirting between some of them with various degrees of success.

I think I saw a Shandian lady elbowed a Skypiean who was getting a little too hands-on with her.

In the end, as the night reaches its peak, every single citizen of this sky island has gathered into this party for celebration and cheers. No fighting, no killing, just laughter and joy. The instruments are out as songs of both sides echoes out into the night sky. Even the giant snake from before is dancing about, his voice filled with nothing but cheer and happiness.

I saw Wiper getting into a drinking contest with Zoro of all people.

"It is amazing." I hear Gan Fall said as he sits down on a barrel a good distance from where I am where another elderly man sits.

"It is, isn't it?" The other old man stated, "After centuries of bloodshed, both Shandians and Skypieans are now dancing about with each other in peace and cheer."

"I thought this day may never come in my lifetime…" The old knight stated, "But now… one of my dreams have come true." He turned to his companion with a cup in hand, "Want some pumpkin juice? Made it fresh from my garden."

"Don't mind if I do."

I chuckled as the two elderly men make small talk over a few drinks of vegetable juice, before looking up into the sky.

All is well.

"This is amazing…"

I turned to see Leva has walked up and sat down next to me, "I was always told since I was a kid that this war is either going to end with us dead, or the Skypieans." She stated, "But to think… that it would end on such a night as this, just us letting go of everything and dancing the night away."

"It is amazing, isn't it…?" Even back on earth, most conflicts either end with surrender or complete domination from the either sides. Or one country created what akin to a doomsday weapon that can be released with a push of a button and everyone just has no choice but to sign a peace treaty to prevent the apocalypse.

"…What are you guys going to do now?" She asked me.

"Hm… Luffy is probably going to find some gold…" I pointed out. I seem to recall the original crew leaving this place with gold on their backs in the manga, as well as a little misunderstanding of sorts, "After that, we'll probably make our way back to the Blue Seas."

"So, you guys are heading back?" She stated.

"Yeah. We still have a long voyage waiting for us down there."

"…I see." She nodded before asking, "Hey, what's it like in the Blue Seas?"

"Oh, you mean the stretch of ocean under us?" I pointed out before thinking a bit, "Well… it's crazy. When we began our journey, we have like twenty different storms thrown at us for the past two minutes without rest!"

"T-Twenty?! Is that even possible?! How does that even work?!"

"I think it has something to do with the magnetic energy from the Twin Capes, our starting land in a sense, conflicting with seven different islands at once…"

"Then, then?! What about the islands?! How's the islands down there?! Do they float on the water like ours on the cloud seas?!"

"Oh, no. You see, the islands down there…"

I spent the rest of the night telling him all about our journey on the Grand Line, our journey and experiences across this stretch of the insane waters. From Whiskey Peak, to Little Garden, to Drum Kingdom and so forth. With each little island, I see Leva's eyes widen further in awe and amazement. I think Aisa joined us at some point when I was explaining the entire Alabasta arc, but I wouldn't know since I was too engrossed in telling the story.

In the end, the nights all blend together as each night I tell them a little more about the world below.

I've include some islands of my own travels, including Risa and Grand Terra.

Soon after, the party truly ended and we all are sleeping away the fatigue of partying for nights without end.

At least, I was until…

"GOLD?! WHERE?!"

"Be quiet! You're talking too loud!"

"You're talking way louder!"

"Shut up! I can't sleep!"

I groaned as I was brought out of slumber by each of our crew minus Robin all started yelling at each other about waking them up in the middle of the night. "Sheesh, what's with the yelling? Did another crazy god appear or did Zoro finally disappear to another dimension?"

"Oi."

"Guys, guys! I found gold!" Luffy declared rather quietly.

"Gold?! Are you serious?!" Sanji whispered.

"Yeah! I just remembered a few moments ago!" Our captain explained, "When I was inside the snake, I found a lot of gold stuff lying around!"

"You mean that giant snake swallowed some of the gold from Shandora?" Zoro pointed out.

"Well, if you factor in its size, it's probably possible." Usopp stated.

"Yeah, yeah, you found gold. Good for us, yippee. Now let me sleep…" I groaned as I tries to go back to dreamland.

And of course, Nami is not having any of it as she pulls me out of my slumber by pulling on my ear to my ire, "No, no! You are going to help us get the gold out of that giant of a reptile!"

"Hey, I'm injured, Nami…" I grumbled pointing at my bandages, "I'm not in any shape to go body diving into a giant snake."

"That didn't stop you from chasing me into the woods; or getting electrocuted by god _thrice_."

"…I got nothing to rebut that."

"That's what I thought."

* * *

Leva glanced around, the other villagers have gone off to retrieve the golden bell. She thinks she saw the Skypieans following them too. But either way, there aren't anyone there in the same room as her. She then ran off to her corner in the room, before taking out a large rucksack and starts stuffing in a lot of things.

'Let's see… got some spare clothes… my toothbrush… should I bring this? This is needed, definitely. Oh, and also–'

"What are you doing, Leva?"

She stopped to her movement, before nervously turning backwards to see Laki standing there with a knowing looking on her face.

"H-Hey, Laki…"

"…Where are you planning on going, Leva?"

"…" She looked away from an ashamed expression, "…I want to head to the Blue Seas."

"…I thought so." The older woman sighed, "You have been talking with that pirate girl, right?"

"I… it's just, they sound so amazing!" She declared, "All that amazing things, happening right below our feet! You know that there are beasts larger than even the largest cloud snake in the White-Sea?! They are called Sea Kings!"

"Leva…"

"I know, I know, it's a stupid idea." She sighed, "I'm just one little girl, I'm short, not as strong as Wiper, I'm not that good with a rifle like you!"

"But… Even so…" She clenched her fists tightly. "I want to go there!" She declared firmly, "I want to see more than just this patch of Vearth! I want to see all there is to see in the Blue Seas! So… even if you stop me, I'll still go! No matter what!"

"…I never tell you to stop."

"…Huh?"

Laki chuckled, "All I did is ask where you are going. I'm not going to stop you." She glances at the entrance of the room, where she saw the slight glimpse hair of the youngest member of their little family, "Leva, I wanted to allow you and Aisa to have a peaceful life. To give you a proper childhood, unlike some of us… But I always know, I know you are fated for something greater."

"Laki-nee…"

"I only want to do one thing before you go."

She walks up to the young girl, before pulling her into a soft embrace, "Remember to brush your teeth, always change out of your clothes once in a while, and try to play nice with those people, okay."

"Laki-nee…!" Leva tries to hold it in, as tears starts to leak out of the edge of her eyes before sobbing onto her hug, "I'll miss you! I'll write every day! I swear, I'll be good!"

"Yeah, I know."

"Hey, Leva! Are you seriously leaving without telling us?!"

Footsteps are heard as a couple Shandians entered the room much to the young girl's surprise.

"Wiper, Kamakiri, even Braham…!"

The three warriors walked up to the hugging girls with the berserker in the lead, before he knocks a punch into her head.

"Ow!"

"Oi, Wiper!"

He ignored Laki's cry before frowning, "That's for taking the Reject Dial without asking. You could have killed yourself."

"I-I know that… but…Ah!" Leva searched her pockets before handing up the black Dial to him, "Forgot to return this. Sorry…"

"Keep it."

"Huh?"

"The Blue Seas is a dangerous place, right?" He stated with a solid smile, "You'll need all the firepower you can get. Besides, I have no need for such a weapon now that the war is over."

"Wiper…!"

"Stay safe when you're out there, okay?" Kamakiri tells her.

"We will miss you." Braham noted.

"You guys…"

"Leva!"

She turned to the young voice, with Aisa running up to her before slamming into her with a hugging tackle. "You're going far away, huh…?"

"Yeah…"

"I can't come?"

"Not this time, I'm afraid." She slightly chuckled, "Remember to be good to Laki, okay?"

"I will…"

Everyone stayed in silence as the two sisters hugged, before Laki pulled them both into a group hug.

* * *

I groaned as I tried to shake the snake's 'juices' off of my feet. On my back are at least a hundred pounds of gold, be it in ingots and jewelry.

After that night of discussing, Nami has most of us inside the damn snake scavenging what shiny metals we can find, even those on the dead skeletons littered about. In the end we came up to at least four full bags of material fortune. Right now, we are waiting in on Robin, who is most likely at the golden bell reading the poneglyph situated in it.

If I remember the climax of this arc right, the Shandians and Skypieans will come bearing a large pillar of gold as a gift, only to be mistaken as a hostile response to us taking the gold, we all run off and leave Skypiea; and then finally returning to the Blue Seas before proceeding on to the next island. Or lands into a marine base, either of the two seems rather possible.

Now, I wonder if we can take that golden pillar with us? Additional budget couldn't hurt anyone, and more money means easily lives with dealing with Luffy's appetite.

"What is taking Robin so long…?" Luffy asked.

"And why is it so empty here?" Chopper wonders, "What happened to the guerillas and angels?"

"It'll be better that way." Sanji stated, "They'd probably come chasing after us if they spotted us."

"After all, we're trying to make off with all this gold!" Usopp noted.

"Really?" I pointed out.

"Well, Nami and Conis should be getting the ship ready to leave at a moment's notice, but…" Zoro yawned a little before looking around, "Ugh, what a bother… I'm not waiting any longer. I'll be heading back towards to the ship."

"No, you dumbass!"

"Dumbass!"

"Dumbass moss-head!"

"Moss-head dumbass!"

I groaned as the four guys plus one animal all got into a large brawl, with the sniper and doctor immediately knocked out almost instantly. Seriously, why are you guys fighting again? I then felt a ting on my Observation radar, notices Robin is walking up to us with several Shandians and Skypieans following her with what looks like a large pillar wrapped in cloth.

"Oh, Robin!" I greeted her.

"Hurry up, Robin!" Luffy called out, "We stole the gold, so it's time to run!"

"Are you retarded?! Don't say that!" Sanji screamed at him, "Just look at all the people coming back behind her!"

"Oh crap! They've got a huge cannon!" Usopp cried out in panic.

"AGHH! There's so many of them!"

"Quick! Let head back to the ship!" Our captain carried on to shout, "We can't stay here any longer! See! Look at this huge haul! We're rich now!"

"A-Ah! P-Please wait a moment!"

"Crap! They are on to us!" The cook cried out.

I stared at them as they all starts running away towards where Going Merry is docked, staying rooted there watching them slowly disappear into the forest. Robin walks up to me with a confused smile, I raised up my hand, before counting down with my fingers.

…5

…4

…3

…2

…1

"What are you doing, Rein?!" Usopp screamed running towards me, "We have to get away now, before they–"

I then knock my sheathed blade onto his skull hard stopping his little panic, before sighing and said, "Usopp, think for a second. If they have such a large cannon all this time, why didn't they use it against Enel before?"

"Huh? I mean, aren't they afraid of him in the first place? They probably wouldn't affect him at all."

"They could at least try. And one last thing." I pointed at the sack of gold on my back, "I have been carrying this much gold in front of them for a while now, and they are not shouting about stealing or thieves or anything. I'm still standing here, unchained and unbind. If they are panicking about their gold, shouldn't they be pushing me down by now?"

"Y-Yeah! She's right!"

"We don't care about gold or things like that!"

"Yeah, what can we even do with it?"

One after another, the Shandians and Skypieans voices out their counter-argument to his worries, as the rest of the crew came back confused about our lack of urgency.

"Why aren't you guys running?" Zoro asked.

"These good folks are just here to give us a gift of gratitude." Robin tells us.

"A gift?"

The cloth around the large pillar is removed, I think I hear everyone's jaw slamming into the ground in shock and awe. I would too, looking at the sheer size of the golden pillar that is presented to us. This much gold is at least hundred times the amount we got from inside that huge snake.

"Hoooooooooollllllyyyyyyy ssssssssssshiiittttttt…" Usopp gaped out, "That's A LOT of gold."

"Can we even fit it all on the Going Merry?" Zoro pointed out.

"Well, definitely not all of it." Sanji stated, "At most, we can take at least a good third of it…"

"Nami is going to be so happy when she sees this!" Chopper added in.

"Yeah, the only problem now is how to take this apart…" I stated, "Anyone has a blowtorch, or something of that kind?"

"I have Flame Dials charged and ready to go." The sniper stated.

"And I have a tool that can focus it into something resembling it!" Leva added in.

"Oh, thanks Leva. That would be helpful-WAIT A DAMN MINUTE!" I turned to the little girl now standing beside Usopp, who is also surprised by her sudden appearance as well as the enormous rucksack on her back, "Leva?!"

"Hi!"

"Aren't you that girl that blow a hole in the beanstalk?" Usopp asked.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, "I thought you'll be with Aisa."

"I'm here to ask you something." She stated before clearing her throat, "Can I join you in your travels in the Blue Seas?"

"…WHAT?!" Everyone screamed in shock while Sanji swooned over her, "A beautiful little angel has decided to join us~! How wonderful~!" He sang happily.

"She's fourteen, you pervert."

"Ack! I-I see…"

"Fifteen soon!"

"That's beside the point!" I shouted, "Why do you want to join us?! What about your home? Your family? Your people just won back your homeland! And you just want to leave like that?!"

"I've already said my goodbyes." She stated before looking at me in the eyes, "And I've made up my mind! Those things you told me before? I want to see them! I want to explore the Blue Seas and discover all there it is to see! That's my dream now!"

"…Your dream, huh?" Luffy chuckles, "Why not? You can join us."

"Luffy!" I screamed at him stretching his cheeks angrily, "We are NOT bringing a fifteen-year-old onto a pirate ship into the fucking GRAND LINE! That's beyond reckless!"

"Oh, and here's the tool you'll need." She stated pulling out a shell on a stick with a gear at the mouth of the shell.

"Huh? What's that?" Usopp asked.

"Okay, so you do this and…"

She pressed a small switch and a small hiss goes off, which then flames up almost instantly. After a few tweaks of the gear, the flames narrow down into a single triangular blue flame. "OH~!" The doctor and sniper all looked at the device with awe as the long nose liar pulls it closer to the gold pillar, the shell-blowtorch slowly burning and cutting into the precious metal.

"OH, OH~! This is awesome!"

"AMAZING! What's that?!"

The kiddie trio is soon start to play around with it as they carve into the gold pillar while Leva explains, "I have several others in my bag, as well as blueprints for new ones in the works. I'm sure you'll find my things useful for our travels!"

"I would say, it would be useful to have someone with her caliber on board." Zoro pointed out, "It never hurts to have more builders in the crew."

"But… she's just a kid…" I weakly protested.

"I was about her age when I set out to sea." He argued.

"Yeah, I was already helping Old Man Zeff with his kitchen around then too." Sanji added in.

"I've survived worst at that age." Robin clued in as well.

"You guys don't count!" I screamed at them, "Look! She is just a normal kid! We can't just bring her out to sea just because she wants to! The Grand Line is no place for someone like her to travel about!"

"Come on, let her come along!" Luffy stated, "She's part of the crew now! I said so!"

"Yeah, yeah!" Chopper and Usopp agreed.

"…There's no changing his mind, is there…?" I groaned.

"Refuse your refusal, you mean?" Sanji stated with a smirk.

"Yeah… that…" I let out a loud sigh before staring at our captain, "Fine, I guess she's coming aboard."

"YEAH! Hurray for a new crewmember! Hip, hip…"

"HURRAY!"

"What's with the hold up?! They are going catch us if we don't leave soon–OH MY GOD~! Am I in heaven…~? Someone, please pinch me~!"

"Oh, Nami! Guess what?! We have a new crewmate!"

"Sorry to intrude!"

"WAIT, WHAT?!"

This is NOT going the way I have envisioned it…

* * *

After explaining the entire deal with Leva to Nami, with a few arguments as well as a forceful acceptance, we take to our first task before properly leaving this island, taking apart the gold pillar and moving it all aboard the Going Merry.

Thanks to Leva's blowtorch-like tool, we managed to pack out at least three quarters of the pillar into my spare magic bags as decent sized ingots. Despite their seemly limitless storage, they do have a set limit of items that can stored in them. We found that the hard way when Nami tries her hardest to stock as much gold into one such bag, only for it to vomit all of its contents back out.

In the end, we made it out of Skypiea with at least a hundred thousand pounds of gold in storage, everyone cheering happily about our newly acquired wealth.

Right now, we are sailing across the White-Sea with Conis and Pagaya guiding us towards our exit point.

"Gold! Gold! So much gold~!" Everyone cheered as our kiddie trio dances about.

"Hey, hey! Let's get a huge statue when we get back!" Luffy suggested.

"Don't be stupid, Luffy!" Usopp tells him before suggesting, "We need to increase our firepower! Ten cannons! Five on each side!"

"Nami-swan~! I would love a lock for the fridge~!" Sanji asked.

"Oh! Ooh! I want more medical books!" Chopper asked.

"More booze." Zoro stated.

I ignored their arguments and went to Leva, who is sitting on the railing looking back. "You doing okay?" I asked her.

"Oh, I am." She nodded, "Just a little… excited… nervous, but excited…"

"That's good to hear." I nodded, "But I just want to be doubly sure-"

"I am more sure about this than anything else I have been sure before." She tells me with a firm frown, "Besides, your captain allowed me to join already! Stop trying to persuade me off!"

"Okay! Okay! I get it!" I nervously chuckled, "Just… you seem rather attached to that little girl, Aisa was it? You sure about leaving her behind?"

"I've told everyone, and they all accepted it… even her…" She stated, "And Aisa… she'll be fine. She still has Laki."

"I see…"

"Everyone! Please look towards the front! It's Cloud End!"

We all followed Conis' instructions and saw it. Our exit gate out of this place. It's not as grand as the entry gate, but it describes its job good enough. I hear Luffy sighs from the goat figurehead, "So we're finally leaving, huh…?"

"Now that we're about to leave, it's certainly hard to say goodbye…" Sanji pointed out lighting his cancer stick.

"Guess it's time to bid farewell to these white waters." Zoro noted.

"Sky Island sure was scary… but it was fun too." Chopper stated.

"Beyond that gate is a Milky Road that will take us all the way down to the Blue Seas, right?" Nami asked me.

"Well, it should be." I shrugged my shoulders, "I think it was a long steep drop back down below."

"I've only been around my village and some parts of Upper Yard." Leva added in.

"It looks like we can only accompany you this far, everyone!" Conis calls out as she and her father follow us along the pavement, "Please take care!"

"Thanks for seeing us off, Conis!" Nami greeted.

"Stay safe, Conis-swan~!" Our cook swooned over.

"Thanks for everything!" Usopp tells them.

"Conis! Old man! White puffball! Take care!" Luffy calls out.

"Please raise up your sails and hang on tight to your ship!" Pagaya stated.

We all did as he instructed and soon all the gold is safe inside storage and the sails are all pulled up and secured tightly. I prepare myself for a long steep ride, before something heavy crashing into me, knocking me onto the deck hard as the sounds of *JYOU~**JYOU~!* echoes in my ears. Is it the South Bird we got in Jaya?

"It says 'Don't forget about me!'" Chopper translated.

"Oh yeah, we forgotten about this guy…" Nami noted.

"Yeah, yeah, great and all, but can you guys get him off of me?!" I groaned out in pain.

After a little skirmish over setting the bird down on the railings, we all prepared ourselves for our speedy exit of this mystical place, "Captain! The Log Pose is set on our next island!" Nami called out.

"Alright! Once we get down from here, we can get started on some new adventures!" Luffy called out to us, "Alright guys, ready?! Let's return back to the Blue Seas!"

"AYE-AYE!"

"Please be careful during the fall!"

And then time froze as I looked to the side, just in time for the Merry to leave a strait of cloudy seas before hanging there for a moment. I felt myself float for a single moment, before my mind fully processed what's going to happen as time finally resumes.

"OH, COME OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!"

I screamed for dear life as our vessel with us on board falls down at rapidly increasing speed. I think we reached Terminal Velocity as most of us are already floating off the deck. A sharp whistle later, I saw a large octopus leap out of the cloudy sea and grabbed onto our boat.

Before any of us can react, our boat sudden jerked to a stop with most of us slamming head-first onto the deck. I rubbed my sore nose before staring up the bottom of the large octopus with curiosity and confusion.

"H-Hey guys! Check it out!"

We all followed Luffy's gaze from the side of the ship, and what greets us is that the large animal has puffed up like a huge hot air balloon, which has allowed us to gently float downwards.

"And here I thought the creatures could get anymore weirder…" I muttered in awe.

* _GONG~!_ *

* _GONG~!_ *

* _GONG~!_ *

We all stood for a while, soaking in the melody. I could never truly describe this sound. No words are possible to explain the sensation that bell's tone has on me. "Nowhere else are we going to hear such a tune again." I pointed out.

"Yeah… this is something else…" Nami stated.

"This feels so pleasant, doesn't it?" Sanji noted.

I smiled as I feel the gentle breeze blew passed us, the cloud sea of Skypiea slowly fading away into the distance. A nervous energy starts to tingle down the back of my spine as I looked into the horizon.

A new adventure awaits~!

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Finished! Faster than I thought, too! Never thought I could finish this chapter so quickly! But then again, I have a clear idea on how to write this chapter compared to the previous chapters of this arc.**

 **Now then, the Skypiea arc is finally finished! Now, onwards to… actually, why don't you guys decide?**

 **Should I go with the anime and head into Navarone arc?  
OR head straight to the Davy Back Fight?**

 **The one with the most responses to would make the cut!**

 **I honestly am okay with either, just that one would be a little trickier to write compared to the other.**

 **And with that out of the way, let's talk about Leva.**

 **To be completely honest, I'm not sure if I did Leva well enough. Is she well-rounded enough or did she just fall down flat? What do you guys think about her? Did I write a pretty interesting character with her, or did I just shoehorn her in with a really flat character writing?**

 **Please, I wish to know your opinions on this.**

 **On another note, this story has over 100 reviews! And more than 300 follows! I never thought this story would get this popular!**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this! Truly, it is a real pleasure to write this, and it is doubly great when people really enjoys it.**


	31. Ch 31:Surprise Navarone

**Chapter 31: Surprise Navarone**

* * *

As our goat-themed vessel floats down gently on its large octopus balloon with the sky slowly setting into the embers of early evening day, we all start our proper intduction of our new crewmate into the pirate crew, as well as assigning her real position on the ship.

"I-It's nice to meet you all!" Leva greets all of us with a stiff stance, "My name is Leva! Age 14! Please take care of me from now on!"

"…What are you doing?" Zoro asked confused.

"Oh, I thought it would better if I introduce myself properly to everyone." She stated.

"We know who you are already." Luffy noted digging his nose, "There's no need to tell us again."

"Although, we do need assign her a proper position." Nami noted, "She can't just be _a_ crewmate forever."

I nodded in agreement, "I mean, most of us have our distinct jobs, so to speak, to do on this ship. We just need to find one for her."

"What can you do?" Usopp asked curiously, "Besides all those awesome gadgets you have, I mean."

"Well… I was tasked with weapon maintenance back in the village." She noted, "I helped fix any fractured firearms, bazookas, dial weaponry, although it is limited to just fixing up. I wanted to upgraded some of them but they wouldn't let me… And I sometimes fix up a few wavers from time to time."

"Weapon maintenance… We definitely have a position for that…" Sanji pointed out, "Usopp's great and all, but we haven't use our cannons since… I just realized, we have never used our cannons throughout our entire journey." I opened my mouth to rebut that, "Those times with that whale and Alabasta don't really count." I then closed my mouth to his excuse.

"Then it's settled then." Luffy nodded sagely, "You'll be our gunner! In charge of all the explosive stuff and all that!"

"That's not what a gunner does, Luffy…" Our navigator groaned palm to her face.

"We _do_ need someone to man the cannons proper." I pointed out, "Do you mind doing that, Leva? If it's not too much trouble for you."

"Sure! As long as I have full control over what to do with them!" She declared proudly, before glancing aside bashfully, "That is… if that is possible…"

"Knock yourself out." Zoro stated, "Not like we really used them in the first place."

"Thank you!" She smirked with a glint of what I assume is genius in her eyes, "Oh… I have so many plans~! I think I have some blueprints leftover in my bag-"

"But before that!" Nami walked up and grabbed her by the scuff of her top, "You need to bathe. Really badly. I have been ignoring for a while, but you stink really bad!"

"…Now that you mentioned it…" I took a sniff in the air, noticing the slight musk of sweat and oil in the air I never noticed before. Is that from her?

"I don't smell that bad!"

"Yes, you do!" Our navigator stated firmly as she walks towards the washroom with Leva struggling in her grip. We all looked at each other, before shrugging our shoulders and went off to do our things to preoccupy ourselves. Luffy with just hanging and leaping about the ship, Usopp going into the kitchen with a Dials at hand and Zoro deciding to take a nap as always.

I went back into the cabin to begin writing our log entry for Skypiea. The entire time we have been on that island I haven't got a chance to write at all. Let's see… I'll start with the Knock-Up Stream and with the White-Sea… And then all the fishes I have caught…

After a few lines later, I hear the trapdoor towards the woman's room opened. At the side of my sight, Leva walked down the stairs with a towel around her body as she rummages through her bag for some clothes.

"Please remember to wipe yourself down completely." I tell her.

"I'm not a kid, you know…" She grumbled before taking out a more navy-style version of her usual outfit before starting to change.

* * *

I manages to finish the log entry for our first day on Skypiea before I notices the stationary on the table starting to float up. Then a second later I start to feel myself floating upwards myself, "W-What's going on?!"

"Did something happen to the ship?" Leva wonders as the both of us keep ourselves steady on the stairs before managing to open the door to the deck while holding onto the frame for dear life. "What's happening?!"

"The ship is falling!" Chopper tells her.

"What?! Wait, I got it!" She reached below deck as she ran back down the stairs, before surfacing again with a few red Jet Dials in her hand, "Stored these as back-ups in case of emergencies, but considering the circumstances…" She tosses them towards our sniper, who manages to secure a belt around his waist before reacting in time to catch the dials, "Use those to float the ship up!"

"Oh! You've read my mind!" Usopp then leaped onto the railings, before getting some little cold feet as it would seem.

"Don't be reckless, Usopp!" Sanji called out.

"T-This… This is nothing!" The sniper shouts out before securing a hook to the railing and leaping off with a long rope extending from his belt, which is extends to its utmost length that causes him to swing down towards the keel of the ship. A few tense moments later, the momentum of the ship starts to slow down.

"Yes! You did it!" Leva cheered as she got onto the deck proper with a pumped fist up in the air.

"Hahaha! All in the day's work for the Great Captain Usopp!" He boasts as he floats up a little.

"Amazing, Usopp!" Chopper cheered.

"Hahaha! I was scared for a moment there!" Luffy laughed.

"I thought we are a goner for sure." Nami sighed in relief.

"At least we're out of danger now…" I sighed, "What the heck happen-"

And at that exact moment, the balloon octopus suddenly just inflates completely, letting go of the Merry in the process, which is in turn just renders Usopp's efforts meaningless as we all starts falling yet again much to our horror. "Everyone! Grab on tight and hold on!" Luffy commanded which we followed diligently.

Soon enough, I felt a loud impact and a huge splash as waves of cold seawater floods onto the deck, washing all of us wet and soaking us through the bone.

"Nami-san! Rein-chan! Robin-chan! Are you alright?!" Sanji called out.

"F-Fine!" I croaked out as I slowly let go of my grip on the stairs' railing in relief while coughing at the insane level of saltiness on my tongue, "Wet to the bone, but fine!"

"That really startled me…!" Nami states out in fright, "The octopus suddenly shrinks back all the way…"

"What the heck happened…?" Zoro wonders.

"Wonder if the air leaked out or something…" Robin pointed out.

"But…!" Luffy called out as I saw him removes the octopus from his face, "We manages to get down alive…! Thanks, little guy."

We all took a chance to take a short breather, Sanji even lights up a new cigarette, before he starts to point out, "We really went to one hell of a place, didn't we?"

"Looking back, it's truly is far up there." Robin noted.

"It's like a dream…" Nami added in.

"A dream land…" Chopper noted in awe, "Wonder if we'll ever go back up there someday…"

"We will." Leva noted with a smile, "Skypiea isn't going anywhere soon. Besides…" She looked up fondly, "…I bet Aisa would want to hear my stories…"

"At any rate, now things are calm again, I'll make us some coffee." Sanji tells us.

"I'll rather have dinner!" Luffy called out.

I let their conversation goes on in the background as I took a look around. Normally, this would be the ocean sea if we are following the manga chapter by chapter. But we are currently surrounded by stone cliffs, as well as… wait…

What's that carved into the cliff…? And are those cannons…? And why is my radar going nuts with the amount of… people… SHIT!

"SCATTER! EVERYONE FUCKING SCATTER!" I screamed out.

"What's wrong, Rein?" Usopp asked.

"This is not good! We are not in the open ocean!" I shouted as the spotlights starts shining down on us, "We are in a fucking marine base!"

"WHAT?!"

"MOVE! Everyone, run! Abandon ship!" Zoro commanded out, we followed accordingly as we all start to leave the boat one way or the other, mostly by diving into the waters below. It was a huge blur as everyone all did all sorts of things at the same time as I dived in and swam as fast as I could in a random direction.

* * *

I panted on the earthy ground I manages to reach as I took a breather, but then senses some people as well as the sounds of footsteps and quickly dived back into the water. A quick peek above to see a pair of marines marching past with rifles on hand as well as a lit lamp on the other. I held my breath as I wait for the two of them to pass.

As soon as they are out of sight and far enough, I surfaced up and let out a tense sigh of relief before looking around. The large red bridge that connects the central spire with the outside natural walls, cannons pultruding out of the cliff-faces, yup, this is it.

Navarone Base, headquarters of the marine squad G-8, led by Vice-Admiral Jonathan, one of the smartest people on this part of the ocean.

This is bad… really, really, bad… I wasn't expecting a filler arc to appear at all! Everything has followed the manga up till now! Why did this have to happen now?! And worst of all, I've zero idea what's going to happen here! I've only watched the anime once and have been following the manga more since the whole deal with the Punk Hazard arc. So, I have skipped this arc completely!

All that I know of this arc is that Jonathan is an incredible strategic genius worthy of his rank a few notably ranked officers under his command, he has a wife named Jessica who worked at the kitchen as its head chef, and that he loves fishing. That's about it!

I took a quick look around, notices a path into the central building. Well, anything else, I would need to hide first. And what's better than in plain sight?

I looked around, notices the lack of people and took the chance to get on land before rushing into the main tower/building thing. A few pathways down, and a near hit with a patrolman, and I managed to reach a door that reads out [Locker] on it. "Perfect." I quickly unlock and enters the room, silently closing it behind me.

The room is rather stinky, with lockers all about with the stank of sweat in the air. Not that it is any different from the men's room back on Merry, just minus the scent of tobacco and grease. I quickly rummage through any lockers, finding one with a broken lock and pulling out my disguise.

A standard Marine officer uniform, like the ones the standard marine soldiers wear with a cap to match. This will do!

I hang Raitou on my back via a strap before walking out with my new uniform. Keeping a quick look around as I walked about the place. The first thing I need is to get a map of this place. If I can figure out where they would store Merry, then I can find a way for us to gather there!

Just as I turned a corner, I walked straight into a pair of soldiers with rifles on hand. Crap! What's with my radar tonight?!

"Hm? What are you doing?" One of them asked me.

'Ah! Crap!'

"Hey, listen, I know that this place is a maze but that's no excuse to head for the mess hall this late at night!"

"…Huh?"

"I know, I know, Chef Jessica's food are delicious, but she would kill you if you try to swipe some supper grub!"

"…Eh?"

"Hey, are you listening?!"

"A-AH! Y-Yes, sir!" I saluted in a panic.

"Why are you saluting, we're the same rank." He asked, "Actually, I've never seen you before. What's your name and department?"

"O-OH! I-I'm…" Come on… think of a name… any name… "C-Crosshart! I-I'm from the… u-um… I don't remember…"

"Crosshart, huh? Never heard of you." He stated, "And I've never heard of a female marine in G-8 besides Chef Jessica. A new recruit?"

"A-Ah! Yes! I'm a new transfer! F-From the…" What was Suiren's unit's name again…? "East Blue! 20th branch! I just started work today!"

"East Blue? What's a recruit like you doing transferring out here?" He asked, "That's mighty suspicious…"

"Come on, Terry." The other officer tells his pal, "We're already behind schedule for our post already. I don't want to get another earful from the Lieutenant. Again. For the sixth time this month."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, Lee." The man, Terry tells him before turning back to me, "Look pal, I'll turn the other way just once. Just do us a favor and head for your station now, will you? The entire base is up in arms since that pirate ship just appear out of nowhere, and the commander has us armed and ready for the Straw Hat pirates!"

"Where's your station?" Lee asked me.

"Oh, um… I forgot? Didn't pay attention to the briefing… Too tired…"

"Yeah, aren't we all?" He groaned, "Look, just… don't say I didn't warn you."

He and his partner rushes down the corridor, leaving me there in the corridor, allowing me to let out a huge sigh of relief. Oh god, that was way too close! I can't believe I have pulled that off!

I got to be more careful… and keep a closer sense at my radar…

* * *

After what happened with the patrolmen, I took to a stealthier approach via hiding from a few patrolmen while taking a good mental map of where I have been while checking rooms for a map of this base. But alas… In the end, after checking most of the rooms I have come across, I couldn't find even a hint of where a map of this place might be… and judging from the sunlight from the few windows I passed by, I must have spent an entire night just wandering about and hiding, with nothing to show for it.

Goddamn it…! Where's the maintenance room? Or even the command office? Anywhere with schematics for this place is good enough…

I turned down a hallway, only to come out onto a large bridge overlooking an inland docking bay, where there are marine officers all either looking about as a security detail or running about helping with unloading supplies and the works with few rugged marine battleships docked in.

It is there where I saw a couple of people talking pretty loudly, one of them is a standard marine soldier while the other seems to be a much higher rank if the white coat he is wearing over the purple outfit of his indicates otherwise. Bits and pieces of the conversation I was able to catch seems to put that man to be some kind of high ranking officer from the Marine Headquarters and he want to talk to Jonathan for whatever reason.

As he took to leave, I slowly and quietly keep a lookout before leaving via the hallway I walked in.

A few turns here and there, and I still have NO idea where I am…

…Is Zoro's sense of direction contagious…? Is that it? Is that why I'm doing here?

"NO! I REFUSE!" I shouted angrily.

"What are you doing?!"

I froze in shock of nearly getting caught as well as my stupidity of shouting out while in disguise. I nervously turned to the face the voice, a tall man in a white coat under with dark brown hair and a growing aftershave under his chin. If I remember correctly, he should be Drake, the lieutenant under Jonathan. At least, I think that's him…

"L-Lieutenant, sir!" I immediately saluted in fright.

"Why aren't you at your post, soldier?!"

"U-Um, I-I lost track of time! S-Sir!" I shouted out before stepping back a few steps, "I-I'll head my way there right now!"

"Wait!"

I froze as I stood as straight as I could. I felt his eyes look all over me, seemingly scanning my entire body and face.

"What's your rank and division, soldier?"

"O-Oh! I-I'm… uh… A Seaman Recruit, sir!" I manages to croak out before thinking as hard as I could about a division, "A-As for my division… um… what was it…?"

"Division, soldier!"

"I-Internal Affairs, sir!"

"Internal Affairs, huh?" He frowned as he continues to glare right into my eyes, "That's strange… I've never heard of such a division in Navarone…"

"I-I'm from Headquarters! I came here on that ship!"

"Huh? But you just said that-"

"And I think my division is probably looking for me right now, so I must be off!"

"H-Hey, wait!"

I ignore his shouts as I took to a run as fast as I could down the hallway. Checking his signature, I make a turn around a corner before dashing into the first room I came across and closing it quickly. I felt his signature and his footsteps slowly pats away into the distance, before breathing a sigh of relief.

"That was close…"

"Ahem."

I flinched, slowly turned into the room, a lone man is lying down on the large couch with his marine's hat over his head, who then lifts it up to show his dark cyan eyes. "Can you keep it down? I'm trying to sleep."

"O-Oh… sure, sorry." I apologized as I took a look around of the room. It's rather small compared to the other rooms with a few chairs and tables scattered about in a small controlled chaos sort of way. This must be the lounge area, I think… Never would have thought that a marine base would have one.

"Zzzz…"

I looked back to the man on the couch, who is snoozing away without a care in the world. He seems rather harmless, a man of decent height, roughly about Zoro's stature and build, in a normal marine outfit that seems to be altered a little considering the red ends of his pants' legs and a pair of wooden geta sandals hanging loosely on his toes, as well as his lack of a scarf and the extended sleeves of his shirt that reaches his elbow.

And then I notice a shinai on the coffee table, a rather unique one as the bamboo blade-rod thing seems rather metallic with dark rings and the tip seems like a metal bottle cap.

That's his weapon? That means he is not a lowly soldier, must be ranked at least above petty officer…

"So, you're going to stand there or take a seat?"

I flinched when the snoozing man spoke, "What are you waiting for, an invitation?" He asked, "Or… did Jonathan send you here?"

"Um… Maybe…?" I croaked out confused. So, he refers to Jonathan by name, not by rank…? Is he close to him? Is he someone I've missed from this arc's characters…?

"Oh, for love of all things- Just tell him that I'll get to issuing the new patrol schedule AFTER my nap!" He all but shouted, "Has me all night and morning just checking about that pirate ship without saying ANYTHING of his strategy and he expects me to continue on without rest?!"

Okay, he's definitely something else…

" _Puru puru puru puru~"_

" _Puru puru puru puru~"_

He groaned as I watch him get up with his hat falling onto the couch, reveals very messy black hair that reaches past his ears in a very shriveled bob, and take out a ringing Den Den Mushi from his pocket and answering, " _Ka-cha!_ Yeah, yeah, what is it?"

" _Warrant Officer Lance, sir! Lieutanent Drake has new orders for all soldiers!_ " The voice from the snail reported in, " _All soldiers is to keep a look out for any suspicious people in the base. They might be the Straw Hat pirates in disguise lurking about._ "

"…" His gaze turns to me, I felt my nerves just short-circuited as I saw his lazy gaze turn to realization before an understanding, "Copy that. Also, may I request that you sent a small squad to the second-floor staff lounge on the north block?"

" _Hm? What for sir?_ "

"One of the suspected pirates seems to be standing right in front of me."

He hangs up the snail and got up from the couch, picking up his shinai in his left hand. "So, lady." He turns to me with a lazy gaze as he passed his weapon to his other hand, "Mind surrendering? It'll be really troublesome if you try to resist."

Oh, for fuck sake…

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Yes! Navarone, it is! I've seen quite a lot of people wanting to see this arc, so ask and you shall receive!**

 **So yeah! Leva is now the official Gunner for the Straw Hats now! Although her role in this arc isn't going to be too significant, so you'll probably going to see just a little titbit of her in this arc before leaping back to Rein again.**

 **Now then… Navarone. The best filler arc of this series that has been unmatched so far by any other filler arcs out there. I've got to confess, I didn't really watch this arc all the way through, skipped a few episodes to get to the next arc for me. So this may not be the easiest to write, but damn it if I'm not going to write this properly! Got to give this arc some justice in adaption!**

 **Look forward to how this arc is going to turn out for our SI protagonist.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	32. Ch 32:Escape Navarone!

**Chapter 32: Escape Navarone!**

Minutes before Rein meets Lance...

Leva peeked out from inside a barrel that is being wheeled along the pavement across the docks. She looked around, worried about her new friends. She knows that pirates are considered bad people, and the Marines are considered good people, like the White Berets. That was why she went and hid herself in a barrel in one of the docks for the night. That was the one time she is grateful for her small size.

She didn't expect her to be wheeled away when she was sleeping.

'Where am I?' She wonders as she tries her best to survey her surroundings from the hole in the barrel. She knows she is in the interior of the large building, considering the windows doted about along the way, and that she is being wheeled by two people from the conversation going on.

From what she gathered from them, the barrel she is in contained supplies for the kitchen, specifically fruits and vegetables. Although she kind of guessed it from its contents which she tossed into the water the night prior so that she could fit inside. There are still some remaining in the barrel, like the tomato she is munching on right now.

"Hey, did you hear?" She felt the trolley moved to a stop as well as a new voice, "It seems that one of the Straw Hat pirates has been found!"

"Really? Which one?"

"'Pirate Hunter' Roronoa Zoro!"

"Him? That scary-ass bounty-hunter turned pirate?"

"Yeah! Lieutenant Drake is interrogating him as we speak!"

"Man, that was a surprise! To think that a member of that crew manages to infiltrate Navarone."

"Told you it wasn't a ghost ship."

"Yeah, I guess it was just some rumor that old coot cooked up after all."

"I think the entire shipwright division are rather convinced about it. One of them said… what was it… that woman hands appeared on his body?"

"Yeah, right! I bet he is just half-asleep and dreamed up the whole thing!"

"Yeah, like Terry and Lee."

"What about them?"

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just they are convinced that they met a new lady marine last night, said she was a new transfer from the East Blue."

"Transfer? I don't think we have any since Lance came here."

"That's what told them, but they are really sure they saw her! Now they are convinced that the ship is cursed and the ghosts of the pirate crew is haunting this base now."

"Hahaha! What dorks!"

"They will never get a promotion if they keep this up!"

"At any case, you guys better keep a look out. Who knows where the Straw Hats are going to be hiding."

"Maybe one of them is in one of these barrels."

"Yeah! Could be!"

Leva flinched as she heard them laugh for a while, worried that she may have been found out. But soon, the trolley starts to move again much to her relief.

A few moments later, she hears the sound of a door opening, followed by the smell and sounds of cooking. From unknown spices to cooked meat, as well as the sounds of people walking about in great hurry as their voices shouts across the room. 'Must be the kitchen. Make sense, considering the contents in the other barrels.'

And she thinks that she heard someone familiar.

Taking another look through the hole, she took note of a familiar blond hair under a white puffy hat, working with a metal wok with great dexterity as he soon empties its contents onto an empty plate and showing them to the other people, allowing her to see a familiar swirly eyebrow.

'Sanji! What's he doing here?'

She soon cannot see him anymore as the trolley soon wheels into another room, one filled with barrels and crates. She heard one of the soldiers picking up the barrel she is in and putting it down with a loud huff and a groan.

"Damn, this barrel is heavy! What's in this, stones?!"

"Really? Cause the others are pretty light."

"Yeah, but this one seems to be a lot heavier! Did they overstock or something?"

"Who knows?"

"…Say, didn't you suggest one of pirates could be in one of these barrels?"

"Yeah…? Why…?"

There was silence, and then the top of the barrel is opened as she saw two people looking in from above.

"…Hi!"

"Oh, hi…"

"What are you doing-?"

She then throws two tomatoes into their faces, causing them to fall back with a cry as they tried to whip the red vegetable off of their faces. That in turn allow Leva to get out of the barrel and slams her foot into one of the soldiers' groin, him letting out a pained squeak before collapsing onto the floor holding his bruised junk twitching every couple of seconds.

Leva then picks up the lid of the barrel and with a mighty leap slams and breaks it over the other soldier, knocking him out cold. She stared at the broken lid in surprise, not expecting it to break at all. "Guess I'm stronger than I look…" She tosses the pieces of splintered wood aside before heading towards the door.

Taking a quick peek through the gap, she notices the entire kitchen staff seems to have prepared for battle against Sanji and… 'Luffy?! Why is he doing here too?!'

She quickly considers what to do, the distance along with the height of the place as she picks up another tomato from the barrel she was in and took aim at the blonde lady, whom she considers the leader. Just as she is about to throw the red vegetable, the large door to the side of them opened as countless of soldiers all walks into the room in a hurried pace, mostly blocking the staff's view of her two crewmates.

This, however, gives her an idea as she quickly re-calculates the trajectory, distance and possible counter effects before tossing a couple tomatoes into the path of one of the marines, which slams right into his shin hard that causes him to trip over which in turn causes him to topple onto the marine behind him, who then topples the one behind him and so forth, the domino effect descends on the entire populace of the room as soon everyone is toppled over.

Taking this chance, Leva dashes out of the storage room just as Luffy and Sanji got out of the room in a hurry which she quickly tagged along. "Hi, guys!"

"Oh, Leva!" Sanji greeted in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"Hid in a barrel that got wheeled in." She tells them, "Then throw a few tomatoes at a few people, broke a lid on one of them, and trip a lot of them with one! It was epic! Although I was expecting them to slip on it…"

"Shishishishi! Nice work, Leva!" Luffy chuckles.

"Although I wouldn't condone wasting food like that…" The blonde cook sighed.

"So, what's the plan, now?" Leva asked curiously as they ran down the hallway, the two guys ditching their marine outfits along the way.

"To save Zoro!" Luffy declared loudly.

"Quiet!"

* * *

I flinched a little as I looked at the man, Lance if I remember what the person behind the snail called him. He is holding a shinai in his hand as he stares right at me, I feeling the coldness of the door behind me as I tried to move back a little more. This is bad! Really, really bad! He's a Warrant Officer, right? Isn't that like above Petty Officer or something? Not mention his personalized clothing… That immediately means competent and strong in marine language!

"So? What's it going to be?" He asked as he slides a little closer.

This is not good! I'm literally backed against a wall! What to do? What to do?!

"…Not surrendering, huh?" He said as I saw his arm moved a little.

A vision of his attack and I immediately ducked down out of the way of his stab, that seems be have blasted the door right off its hinges that in turn causes me to lose a footing and fell onto the floor painfully. Another vision later, I rolled out of the way a strike downward as I got back up and draw out Raitou, just in time to block a sideward swing from the warrant officer.

"Oh, 'Dragon Princess' Rein, huh?" He stated rather curiously, "Bounty 55 million, if I recall… quite a hefty sum you've got for a lady of your stature"

I immediately took a look around for a way out, before hearing footsteps coming down from the other corridor. I push back his weapon before turning around to run, only to find a platoon of marine soldiers all aiming their rifles right at me. Great… A tiger in the east and a dragon in the west…

"So, do you surrender now?" Lance asked, "Or do you think you might be able to escape with such odds against you?"

"…" I looked around, trying to find a way out. One end of corridor is a platoon of soldiers with rifles armed and ready, while the other is a rather skilled fighter that could rival Zoro in strength alone. If I tries to take on the platoon, I would be facing a losing battle with the lack of space that would not allow me to fight properly. But if I take on the officer, they would fill me with bullets before I could inflict a proper hit on him.

That leaves…

I sheathe my sword and begrudgingly raises my hands up in surrender.

"That's the better."

* * *

A few tussles here and there, and I'm tossed into cell roughly with wooden handcuffs locking my hands behind my back. I groan angrily as I felt my bare skin on the rocky floor.

They have to take Raitou AND my clothes too?! I mean, sure the uniforms aren't mine to begin with, but that's better than leaving me in my swimwear alone! That's as bad as being naked! Thank god I've changed back to my usual when we returned to the Merry and not the slightly revealing outfit Nami forced me to wear on Skypiea.

"Oh, Rein." I hear Zoro greets me, "You got caught too?"

"Walked into the wrong place in the worst possible time…" I groaned.

"You too, huh?" Usopp noted, "Today is just isn't our day…"

"We fell right into a marine base surrounded by cliffs. Not being our day is a clear understatement…" I noted with a sigh, "But the good news is that Luffy isn't caught yet. So, we might still have a chance."

"Yeah, leave the rescue mission to the most idiotic person on the planet." The sniper pointing out with a groan, "We're going to prison, aren't we?"

"If we don't escape by the end of the day, then… yeah."

"We're going to die…!"

"But since we're not going anywhere, wake me up once Luffy gets here." I tell them as I dropped to the floor and closes my eyes for a long-awaited nap.

"You're going sleep, now?!"

"She has a valid point." I hear Zoro spoke, "Wake me up as well."

"Oi, Zoro!"

* * *

"HEY! YOU BASTARDS! What do you guys think you're doing?! Don't you know who I am?!"

I groaned as I was awakened by a shouting of a really annoying voice. I got up as much as I can while leaning against the rocky wall as I watch the entire conversation, or argument, carries on in front of me.

"Yeah, yeah, you told us over and over all the way here." One of the soldiers stated with an unconvinced sigh towards the handcuffed man in front of him, "You're that special inspector, Commander Shephard, right?"

"If you know that, you should-!"

"Sorry, but your lies won't work." The soldier added on, "The real Commander Shephard is discussing with Vice Admiral Jonathan as we speak. So, just give up!"

Isn't that the guy from the docks? The one with the marine jacket? Oh my god, did he got mistaken for one of us?! That is hilarious! They actually arrested their own man by mistake!

"Oh come on! Stop embarrassing yourself!" I hear Usopp spoke with a masterful act with dejection, "A man has to know when to quit. There's no use struggling, Condoriano."

"C-Condoriano? What are you talking about?! And who the hell are you supposed to be?!"

"Oh really? Really man?" Our master liar chuckles as he walked up to the imprisoned man with a smirk, "Come on, buddy. Don't tell me you forgotten all about this handsome face?" He pokes him with his nose, "And this beautiful nose of mine?"

Oh…~! I see what he's up to~! Nice~

"Back off, you hoodlum!" The commander shrieked as he shoves our sniper aside, "I don't know him! You hear me! I! Do not! Know him!"

"Hey, what's wrong with you, man?" Usopp asked before shock expression filled his face, "D-Don't tell me! D-Did you lost your memories from slamming onto the mast?! Oh how… how sad…~"

"W-What's up with you?!"

"Oh, Condoriano!" I mocked groaned with what I assume is a disappointed face on me, "Do you really have to do that? To do that to your best friend? That's harsh!"

"Shut up, you shameless bitch! What are you even talking about?! Who's my best friend?!"

"B-Bitch! How dare you!" I mock screamed at him, "I am Mistress Bitch to you! Don't you know that?! Oh wait, you don't! That's a shame! I was hoping to have a real nice session once we get out! Oh, your screams have always been so pleasurable~!"

"Oh, god, NO! I DO NOT have that kink!"

"Oh, quit lying. You totally do! Your cum from last night is still in my hair, you know…"

"Well, that settles that." One of the soldiers stated with a grimace on his face, "But man, some people kinks are really…"

"Yup! Mystery solved!"

"Let's get out of here before they start… uuuggghhh…" I saw one of them shivered in disgust before they walk off.

"Hey! Wait! Where are you guys going?!" The real Shephard screamed, "Hey! I said WAIT! Don't leave me here with these crazy-"

"CONDORIANO!" I then witness Zoro got up, slamming the poor idiot into unconsciousness before walking back to his spot, "Noisy ass… I'm trying to sleep, you know…"

"Nice, Zoro~!" Usopp winked at him, and then turning to me with a grin, "And great work out there, Rein! Although it is a little…"

"Yeah, sorry. I have to come up with something and that came to mind for some reason…" I stated as I felt the heat in my cheeks and ears, "Please don't tell anyone about this, please…"

"…Eh. No promises."

"No, please! Don't you fucking dare!"

* * *

I must have somehow dozed up, as the next time I woke up, it was to the voice of our idiotic captain echoing against the walls.

"OI! Zoro~! Usopp~! Rein~! Where are you guys~?!"

"Huh? That sounded like Luffy!" Usopp pointed out before listening to the echo closely, "It is! It is Luffy! Hey, Luffy! We're over here!"

"Are you sure about doing that?" Zoro asked him, "They are going to know he's coming."

"Ah! That's right! Luffy! Don't come down here!"

"You think that's going to stop him?" I pointed out, "And besides, there's only one way to do this." I breathed in before shouting out, "LUFFY! WE'RE OVER HERE! Oh! AND BE CAREFUL, I THINK THE MARINES ARE HIDING IN THE CORNER TO YOUR RIGHT!"

"Oh, our right? Got it!"

"Wait, what?"

I waited for a few seconds, before the sounds of fighting echoed about as one of the soldiers collapses down in front of us with a shoe mark on his skull which is followed by several more flying onto the hard cage unconscious as well as Lieutenant Drake skidding back with a cut lip and several bruises dotted his face.

"How do you know where we are?" He asked me.

"That's for me to know and you to never find out." I smirked, knowing where they were due to the fact that they are all huddled together making their auras basically a beacon to me. I think I'm getting the hang of this Observation Haki.

"Why you…"

"Gum-Gum Pistol!"

I then witnesses a stretched rubber fist punches the lieutenant aside, as Leva run up to our cage and took out an Impact Dial from her pockets… or at least, I think she took it out from there… Anyway, with an Impact Dial at hand, she aimed it at the edge of the cage much to Usopp's protest.

"Hey, wait a minute! Where are you pointing?!"

"The edge of the cage, duh." She pointed out, before pressing and firing it into the rocky wall, blasting a large hole big enough for us to go through one by one. I went first, due to my size, followed by Usopp and Zoro. After that, I hear more fighting before a soldier tumbles down the stairs and Sanji lands right on his back which sounds of his spine cracking echoing for us to hear.

"Overkill much, Sanji?" I asked worriedly.

"They imprisoned a lady in a dingy cell. They deserve it."

"Oh, of course."

With a swift kick, he manages to break through my handcuffs. I slip them off my wrists before running towards the next cell. "Anyone got something to blow this cage open?"

"Got your spare!" Leva called out tossing an Impact Dial into my opened hand, "What about this guy?"

"Eh, leave him in there."

"Oh, okay."

I fired the Impact Dial right against the wall, the recoil of the damn thing shoots right up my arm to my shoulder as I gritted my teeth in pain. God, that hurt! And Leva fired this?! Oh wait, this is the one that I have stored Sanji's kicks in… never mind! With the large hole in the wall, I manage to crawl inside to grab our things-

Just as LUFFY opened the cage's door. We all stared at him in surprise, as he shrugs and shows us the ring of keys in his hand, "That guy with the sideburns has this in his pockets."

"Of course… why didn't we think of that…?" I groaned as the rest of us all face-palmed.

"Shishishi! You guys are idiots!"

"We don't want to hear that from you!"

"Attention all units!" We hear Drake shouted into his Den Den Mushi, "The prisoners have escaped! I repeat, the prisoners have escaped-GAK!"

"Welp! Time for us to go!" Sanji called out after kicking the man in the face, just as three of us got kitted up with our weapons and I put on a pair of pants and boots I've procured from an unconscious marine.

"ALRIGHT! EVERYONE, RUN AWAY!"

"Aye-Aye!" We all agreed as we took off down the corridors and up the stairs.

"AH! Wait, why is Zoro leading?!" I screamed.

"You got a problem with that?!"

"Yeah! You're going to get us lost!"

"Like hell I am!"

* * *

After running lost for who know how long, because I am pretty sure we have passed that door a few times, we came to a cross-section in the corridor where I saw what's the problem. On all sides, there are marines coming towards us armed to the teeth.

"What now?! We're trapped!" Usopp cried out in horror.

"Yeah, it would seem that way, doesn't it?" I noted, hand on my sword's handle ready to draw.

"Now it's getting interesting~" Luffy chuckles cracking his knuckles, "Escaping an impossible to escape stronghold. What better adventure would it be?"

"How is this an adventure?!" Our sniper shrieked in horror.

"Never mind that now." Zoro noted as we saw our assailants coming closer towards us, "For now, we fight."

"Dully noted." Sanji agreed.

"W-Wait a minute here!"

"GUM-GUM GATLING GUN!" Luffy rushes forwards towards the squad of marines, unleashing his infamous barrage of stretched punches, knocking them away with ease and allowing us to advance through.

After a few more barrages, we manage to get out into open right near a cliff face much to our disappointment. "What the-a dead end?!" Zoro cried.

"No," Luffy points out where to go, "if we run along the cliffside, we should-"

"GET DOWN!"

Thanks to my warning, we all manages to get behind a rock just as a bullet hits close to where we are standing. Sniper?! Where did it come from?!

"So, you've finally shown yourself, Straw Hat Luffy!"

I hear a voice called out, up on the balcony there stood a middle-aged man with orange hair and a black mustache wearing a white overcoat with a marine soldier next to him with a smoking rifle. That's our sniper, it would seem. And that man must be Vice-Admiral Jonathan…

"So that's where you were, Stronghold old man." Luffy called out.

"Of course. This is my private room, after all." The commander stated rather leisurely.

"How's that?! I manages to rescue my comrades, like I said I would!" Luffy called out.

"Ah yes, indeed you have." Jonathan noted, "So, what are you going to do now?"

"I'm going to leave. I have my fun, so I'm going."

"I see, I see… you're going to try and escape."

"That's right."

"Haha, well we'll see about that." The commander chuckled, "I wish you best of luck. Enjoy your escape while you can." He stares intently as us, "Because I'll be catching you soon enough."

"You won't capture us." Our captain stated with a grin, "We're pirates, after all."

"Oh, is that so?"

I had a vision and immediately took action, "Everyone, run! They have a cannon aimed right at us!" And everyone took to my word and took off down the cliffside, just as the cannon hits where we were a couple of minutes ago.

After a few minutes of running, we all manages to get to the part of the cliff where the bridge is located. I notice the lack of soldiers coming towards us, already my danger senses are tingling. Something isn't right. Jonathan is smart, scarily so and is a master tactician as far as I know. So, why did he withdraw his troops from chasing us down?

He must be formulating a strategy to capture us. If that ambush back in the prison show me anything, is that he would attempt to overwhelm us with numbers with ambushes of all sorts. That means… he must be setting us a trap for us further down the road.

"If we can get across this, we should reach Dock 88." Usopp pointed out, "That's where they are keeping the Going Merry."

"But it seems we can't go back the way we came…" Sanji noted for us, as the bottom of the bridge is filled with marine soldiers.

"Then let's head up." Leva pointed at the red metal bridge, "That place seems empty. We might be able to rush through no problem!"

"Yeah, but it's suspicious…" Zoro noted, "It's basically calling us to cross it."

"A trap, then." Sanji concluded.

"T-Trap?!"

"It doesn't matter." Luffy chuckles cracking his knuckles, "Whatever that old man throws our way, it doesn't change that we are leaving this place!"

"That's true." Our swordsman smirked, "Worrying about what's troublesome just causes more trouble."

"What kind of trap that is, it doesn't rather matter." Our cook agreed.

As such, the monster trio ran out towards the bridge to mine and Usopp's horror while Leva follows after them. I groaned in agony as I realized that we are going to set off a trap willingly because of their overconfidence and arrogance, and it is probably going to be a running theme through our escape from this place, "God damn it, you guys…!"

* * *

When we reach the opening and entrance of the bridge, true to Leva's words the place is completely deserted. But to me, I saw them.

In the crates, up on the railings, under the damn bridge and so forth, marines all hiding about ready to attack us. "Guys, it's an ambush." I informed them, "I count twenty… thirty… fifty… one hundred and ten… more than a few hundred marines, all hiding all over the damn thing. And man, their aura is hot."

"As in, they are handsome?" Leva asked.

"No, like HOT." I noted, "Blazing, even."

"A trap, indeed." Sanji noted, "Good thing we have Rein-chan here. We would have been caught by surprise."

"So, what now?" Zoro asked, "Do we take them down?"

"No, let's spring the trap." I smirked before turning to Luffy, "Think you can break this bridge, captain?"

"Of course!" He smirks.

"What are you planning, Rein?" Usopp asked.

"Once we are halfway across the bridge, the entire squad would come out to ambush us. It's the most logical thing to do for such an ambush." I noted, "That would mean that all of them are on the bridge with us. So…"

"Take down the bridge with everyone on it." Sanji concluded, "Also, without the bridge, no one can chase after us. Two birds with one stone."

"Yeah, but how are we going to survive this?!" Our sniper asked worriedly, "If that bridge goes down with us on it, we'll plummet into the water!"

"Which is why…" I gathered them all together as I whispered my idea to them, most of them nodding to my plan and gives me a grin, "So, go with the plan?"

"Go with the plan!" Luffy cheered as he runs out on the bridge with the rest of us chasing along.

"C-Can't we vetoed this plan?" Usopp asked worriedly.

"Yeah! That doesn't seem like a good idea!" Leva agreeing in fear.

As I have suspected, as soon as we reached the halfway point, all the marine soldiers waiting in hiding all comes out ready for a beating. Now I know why their aura is so hot, they all look so hot-blooded! Bulging muscles, sweat pouring down their bodies, it is miracle they are still battle-ready!

"Nowhere to run now, pirates!" One of them shouted.

"Oh really?" Sanji stated with a smirk.

"Everyone! Hold on!" Luffy shouted as he wraps us around him with one of his stretched-out arms, before stretches out his other arm onto the top of the railing, "Gum-Gum Rocket!" He then rockets upward with us still in his grasp, Usopp and Leva screaming their hearts out in terror.

"Now, Luffy!"

"Gum-Gum…" He stretches his foot high up into the air, "AXE!" His foot shoots down under him, slamming right into the bridge, breaking the damn thing in two.

He then followed them up by stretching his arm onto the railing on the other side and pulls us towards it, bowling right through any remaining soldiers standing there. As soon as we spray out of our captain's grasp, I let out a sigh in relief as I feel my shaking hands, "Oh god, it actually worked…"

"Thank god it did…" Sanji noted, "If it hadn't, we'll be swimming with the fishes…"

"You're not making any plans from here on out, Rein!" Usopp screamed at me.

"Scary… the Blue Seas are scary…" Leva groaned.

"Well, we made it." Zoro noted before turning to our sniper, "Usopp, where's Dock 88?"

"Oh, right! This way!"

* * *

Following Usopp's instructions, we maneuver through the corridors with relative ease. Although, it is a bit too much of an ease… there aren't any soldiers stationed anywhere. Not a single one. That is not a good thing. Things are never this easy, especially for us!

"Are you sure this is the right way, Usopp?" Zoro asked.

"Don't worry! I'm sure!" He tells us, "It's just up ahead around that corner! The dock that houses Merry is just to the right!"

"Yeah, but be careful!" I called out, "It is too easy. Nothing is too easy."

"Another trap?" Sanji asked.

"It must be!"

"Right! First, we get our ship back! And then…"

We all skids to a stop as we all now know why there aren't any soldiers lying about.

"Wow, now this is something else…" Sanji commented.

"Rein is right, it is a trap after all." Zoro noted.

"Kind of wishing I wasn't…"

For they are all standing right in front of us, their rifles all aimed towards us. On the bridge above and on the docks below, at least a thousand soldiers armed and ready for us. This must be Jonathan's plan, he knows that we'll try and reclaim the Going Merry and prepared for it! No wonder there aren't any soldiers chasing us.

Why chase when you can spring a trap on them?

"Unit 7 Sharpshooters, forward!"

Fucking… Terrific…

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **Done! Part two of the Navarone Arc complete! Honestly, I was expecting to finish this arc within two chapters at least, but guess I overestimated myself…**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	33. Ch 33:Get back the Gold!

**Chapter 33: Get back the Gold!**

* * *

I gulped when the line of soldiers in front of us with rifles armed and ready to filled us full with lead. Oh, fuck my life. Again.

"FIRE!"

We all got ready to defend ourselves against them, my thumb unlatching my sword from the sheathe-

"Gum-Gum Balloon!"

But then Luffy suddenly inflates up, taking the bullets and bouncing them back towards the troopers, but he also pushes us out of the way without warning.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Sanji and Zoro shouted at him.

"Give us a warning next time!" I screamed at him.

"Unit 12 Cannon Brigade, forward!" Drake commanded once more as the second line of soldiers marched forward and takes a knee as well, aiming bazookas right at us.

"Bazookas now?" Zoro noted.

But then I saw another vision and knew it wasn't good. "Zoro! A tornado! Now!" I ordered, "Those rounds aren't normal rounds!"

"FIRE!"

"As much as I hate following orders…" Our swordsman growled as he draws out all three swords placing Wado into his mouth, "Three-Sword Style: Dragon Twister!"

With the large twisting sword-edged tornado, the rounds from the bazooka are sent flying into the air, where they at most detonate in a blinding flash while the tear gas sprayed up from above. "N-No matter! Close combat unit, forward charge! Attack!" Drake commands out, as the third line of soldiers rushes forward with swords drawn.

I draw out Raitou, blocking and then countering the next guy behind him, before taking a stance, "Dragon Sword Style: Clashing Wings!" I spun around, knocking off and taking down an entire group, "Followed by… Tail Spike!" I launch forward, stabbing passed through a few soldiers, "And then… Tail Whip!" I spun again, taking down another group.

"Oni Giri!" From the corner of my eyes, Zoro dashes through an entire platoon, slashing them all with precise slashes, "Grunts, the lot of them…"

"Concusse!" Sanji then slams several soldiers back with a few well-placed kicks, "But man, they are annoying!"

"IMPACT!" Leva fires another Impact Dial onto the soldiers, knocking him back towards his comrade, "And they keep coming!"

"Gum-Gum Gatling!" Luffy then took out most of soldiers with another of his infamous barrage, "And then…"

"Oh shit-"

"WHIP!"

I quickly ducked in time for the rubber kick sailing right above me, but Zoro and Sanji aren't lucky enough as they too are launched away by Luffy's ill-timed kick that took out all of the combat unit. "Yes! Got them!" Our captain cheered before noticing, "Huh? Where's Zoro and Sanji?"

"You just knocked them away, you idiot!" Usopp cried.

"Watch where you are aiming that!" Leva screamed, "You nearly hit me!"

"Oh, sorry about that!"

"Damn you, you damn shithead!" Sanji shouted.

"Oh, quit your whining, you love-love moron…" Zoro groaned.

"Huh? What was that, you mossy ball you?!"

And such, the two of them started their all familiar quarrel right in front us, in front of the enemy no less, "STOP FIGHTING!" I screamed at them with Luffy's laughter in the background, "WE HAVE AN ENEMY TO FIGHT!"

"FIRE!"

Which causes me to miss a net being fired that tangles our captain up against the wall. "Luffy!"

"Stay where you are!" Drake called out, "The wanted posters does say dead OR alive, but us G-8 would preferably take prisoners alive. Nevertheless! If you continue to resist, I could not guarantee anything."

"Can you get out of that net, Luffy?!" Usopp asked urgently.

"N-No! It's not budging!" Luffy groaned, "A-And… my strength is leaving me for some reason…"

"Sea Stones?!" Zoro concluded.

"Of course, they have Sea Stone nets…" I groaned, "They always have them…"

"Exactly!" The Lieutenant stated with a smirk, "Those who possesses the power of the Devil Fruit would found that net to be a prison! How does it feel, Straw Hat Luffy?"

This isn't good…! I looked around the dock, the entire marine ARMY is aiming their firearms at us. Not only that, Going Merry is just right there! Just a few meters away! Dammit! She's so close!

"Give it up!" Drake tells us firmly, "There's no escape!"

"This isn't good…!" Zoro muttered.

"What do we do?!" Leva asked worriedly, "What do we do?!"

"There's only one thing we can do!" I growled as I readied my sword, "We fight our way to the Going Merry!"

"B-But with so many soldiers…!" Usopp stuttered, "W-We're going to die! It's over man! It's all over-GWAK!"

"Huh? W-Wait, WHAT IS GOING ON?!"

I turned when I hear the sniper getting hit, as I watch him spun in the air before landing on the ground in a convulsing heap, "W-Why…? Why me…?"

"AH! USOPP!" Chopper cries out from the stretcher he was hiding in as he expands to his yeti form and hover over the injured liar, "What happened to you! Your wounds look so serious! Did the marines did this to you?! Those bastards…!"

"No, no, no…" Zoro and Sanji deadpanned.

"Where did you guys come from?!" I cried in shock from the fact that Nami just wheeled in out of nowhere with a stretcher that was hiding Chopper along with another woman. "And who's that you have there?"

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" I hear Drake shouted in panic, which is then followed by-

Huh? What was I doing on the ground? Why is my ears ringing? Oh yeah, from that FUCKING SCREAM!

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!" I screamed at the woman.

"HELP US! WE'VE BEEN TAKEN HOSTAGE!" The woman suddenly screams out, "HE THREATENS TO KILL US ALL IF WE DIDN'T BRING HIM HERE! PLEASE, SAVE US! That large man is a pirate like them too!"

"What?! What are you saying now?!" Chopper cried.

"What's going on? Who is that woman?" Sanji asked as Nami too starts to scream like a damn banshee.

"Don't ask me…" Zoro pointed out.

"Wait… are they…?" I then realized, "Chopper! Play along!"

"Huh?!"

"They are marines, remember?!" I pointed out, "They are supposed to be agents of justice, that means that they would not hurt an innocent!"

"Oh. OH! Then…!" Chopper realized too, before coughing a bit and putting a dramatic flair as he twirls his coat over him like some yeti-dracula, "That's right! Baby silent their cries in my presence! I am the madman of the Straw Hat Pirates! If my demands are not met, these hostages will pay the price!"

Got to give him props for acting. I doubt the marines will be able to see through our deception, especially with Nami playing the role as well.

"Now, if you understand then stand aside! Let us through to our ship! If you don't, I'll snap these women's neck in two!"

"He WILL do it, you know." Zoro tells them with a shit-eating grin, "Even if one of us pisses him off, he'll go ballistic!"

Oh good, they caught on.

"Now would someone who sworn to uphold justice let two beautiful women die?" Sanji added on with a smirk.

"You know, maybe I should scar one of them." I pointed out with a grin, "That might push them onward."

"Huh? Huh?" Leva looked around confused.

"I'll explain later…" I whisper to her.

"…You…" I can hear that guy's teeth grinding from this far back, "Everyone! Fall back! Sharpshooters, lower your rifles!"

Yes! It worked! J-Just a little more and we're home-free!

"They are really doing it, aren't they?" Sanji noted.

"I hope so." Zoro stated, much to mine and the cook's confusion as he proceeds to cut Luffy out of his Sea Stone net.

What is he…? Wait, is he suggesting that Jonathan might have a plan to counter against this? Considering him and what he has done so far, it's a possibility… "Everyone. Keep your guard up." I told them as we witness the marines all withdraw and forming a path to the Going Merry.

"There! We've grant you safe passage to your ship!" Drake tells us, "Now release the hostages."

"N-No!" Chopper announced, although a bit nervously, "I won't release the hostages until we've escaped!"

"You fiend!"

I looked about the troopers, before noticing something. A soldier talking to the Lieutenant about something. Wait, I've seen that trick before! In any hostage situation, there will be a…!

"Zoro. Keep an eye out." I whisper to him, "They are probably planning on getting back the hostages and then arresting us when we let our guard down."

"Got it."

We all slowly walked along the assigned path, me and Zoro keeping a lookout for any suspicious activity. And then, our first-mate spoke, "Nami, Chopper, Rein, Love-cook. Once I give the signal, I want you guys break for the ship." He tells us, "Luffy, I want you to stretched your arm out and get everyone on aboard, can you do that?"

"No problem."

I looked about, trying to get an idea of what they are planning. And then…

*CLACK*

"Oh! My bad…" A marine kneeled down to pick up his dropped rifle, but I know what that is. A distraction.

As the real plan was…

I turned around, facing eye to eye to the marine that is skulking towards out two 'hostages'. "Oh, hi there. Is there something the matter?" Did he really think he could avoid my radar?

"Uh…"

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

I then kick him in the nads hard, his high tone squeal alerts everyone around as he collapses onto the ground convulsing in pain.

"Oh, crap!" I heard Drake cried out.

"Quick! Everyone! Head for the ship!" Zoro orders out.

"N-No choice! All troops, ATTACK!"

All hell broke loose as every marine soldier all picked up arms in preparation to fight, we all stand by ready to fight through the hordes of them. But then…

*BAMP*

"Huh?"

We all turn to face the noise, to then see the Merry slowly sliding down back into the waters below. Was… that supposed to happen?

"Everyone! We're getting on!"

I immediately know that tone as I quickly grab the back of Leva's shirt as we are then tossed up into the air by his rubber appendage, crashing onto the deck of the ship hard. I think I've blacked out for a second as the next thing I saw was Zoro and Luffy slamming themselves onto the boat before falling back onboard, just as the ship lands right onto the waters below.

"Hahaha! We made it, didn't we Merry?" Luffy laughed.

That's it!

I slam my sheath right onto Luffy's head, slamming his rubber head onto the railing, "T-THAT HURTS!"

"Yeah, is going to hurt even more if you keep this up!" I screamed at his face, before turning to Nami and the civilian woman, "So, what are we going to do with her?"

"Toss her overboard?" Zoro suggested.

"Like we can, you dumb moss-head!" Sanji screamed kicking him in the head.

"Well then, what DO we do with her?" Leva asked.

"I'll just leap off." The woman tells us.

"Kobato-san…" Chopper muttered.

"No problem! My dad basically pushed me to learn how to swim." The lady smirked.

"I see…" Nami nodded with understanding, "Sorry for bringing you so much trouble."

"It's fine. It's the least I can do for you."

"Hey! Someone is coming right for us!" Zoro called out.

We all looked about, just as I saw a lone figure coming right toward us. And he looks familiar… wait, isn't that the officer that arrested me?!

"Lance-kun?!"

"Huh? Lance-kun?!" Nami cried.

"Let her go, you damn pirates!" Lance shouted out as he… jumped off the air?! He knows the fucking Six-Powers?! This is bad! As if he wasn't a threat before!

"Is he flying?!" Usopp cried out in panic.

"A Devil Fruit user?" Sanji suggested.

"No. Much worse…" I noted as the officer lands on our deck, glaring right at us before swinging his arm and slamming his shinai right onto Chopper's side, knocking the doctor aside.

"Chopper!"

"Lance-kun! Wait a moment!" Kobato cried out.

"Hold on, Kobato." Lance tells her as he readies his shinai ready to strike us down, "I'll take care of these guys soon enough!"

Not good! Not good at all! What do we do now?! Especially with an officer who is obviously deserving of a rank at least Commodore or higher!

"Oh? You seem rather confident." Zoro noted as he rushes forward with two of his swords drawn, slashing right at Lance who blocked to everyone surprise with the exception of me. He then deflected and countered back, the lot of his follow-up attacks causes our first-mate to go on the defensive against the metallic practice weapon.

"Move, moss-head!" Sanji rushes in with his foot raised for a side up kick to the officer's chest, "Poitrine Shoot!"

"Iron Body!"

And the attacks hits home, which did absolutely nothing to him as he took that hit straight on, leaving the cook's foot firmly on his chest unmoving. "W-What?!"

"Finger Pistol!"

The officer then stabs his finger right into our cook's right shoulder, much to our surprise and horror as Sanji takes a few steps back while holding onto his injury, "What kind of fingers does he have?"

"A human one." Lance stated firmly, before stabbing his shinai forward. The blonde cook barely dodged out of the way as the weapon almost stab his chest right through. Sanji growls as he spun and slams a high-kick to his right ribs, the officer blocking the attack with his weapon that causes the cook to flinch on impact.

"What is that thing even made off?!" Nami cried.

"Metal, I would presume." I pointed out, "I fought with him once, and my sword barely made a mark on it."

"That changes nothing!" Luffy charges towards our invader with a fist pulled back, Lance easily dodges his stretched punch and then slams the metal weapon onto his neck, locking him onto the mast. "H-Huh…? M-My strength… Is failing…"

"Sea Stone alloy." The officer noted raising his free hand, pulling back a fist with his index finger pointing out, "Cost me years of salary and some annoying favors, but worth it all the same."

"D-Dammit…!"

"It's the end! Finger Pisto-Grk!"

He nearly stabs right into Luffy's face, only to get his attack stopped when his arm is stopped by the sprouting of countless arms from his shoulder that held it back just inches away from our captain's eyeball. The arms the proceeds to bent pull his arm back, before several more appears out to hold his other arm in place which in turn slaps his weapon out of his hand.

"W-What is this?!"

"I would prefer my captain to be lacking any holes in his head, thank you very much."

We all turned to the presence of a new voice, Robin has appeared on the deck somehow with what looks like a roll of parchment in her hand, which she had both up in her signature stance for her abilities. Where did she come from?

"Robin!/Robin-chwan~!"

"D… 'Devil Child' Nico Robin…" Lance mumbled out in the stress of his undesirable position, "So you're a part of the Straw Hat Pirates now…"

"I wouldn't consider myself that far… yet…" She muttered to my glee. She's coming around, I knew it!

"You know… my teacher told me about you…" The officer added on with a frown, "A lot of things… like how anyone that you've interacted with will end in tragedy."

"…!" Oh, that fucker! Don't tell me his mentor is…!

"Maybe that's why they are in this base." He stated, "Seems like what he stated about you is true. You DO bring misfortune to those around you-"

"Shut your mouth!" Sanji shouted angrily, "Don't you dare talk about Robin-chan like that!"

"Either way, you'll never escape from here, even with your hostage." Lance pointed out glancing at Kobato for a moment, "This base is an inescapable fortress."

"As if! I said we're getting out, so we're getting out!" Luffy declared firmly.

"Really? You want to get out?" The officer chuckles, "Well, go ahead and try. I'm sure you'll find a way. But…"

"What about the loot you pilfered?"

Everyone stared right at him, before I can hear everyone's, even my own, thoughts grind to a halt at his words. Loot… that means…

"Leva! Check the storage room!" Nami ordered, the young girl gladly follow through by rushing into the room with post haste. (Lance: Ha! Called it!) When she came out, her eyes are wide and her complexion pale.

"The gold… they're gone!"

"We took all of it, at least that's what Jonathan had ordered to be done." Lance pointed out, "Stolen goods have to be reclaimed by the government, after all."

"That gold didn't belong to anyone!" Usopp shouted, "It was given to us by the People of the Sky!"

"People of the Sky?"

"At any rate, we're not leaving until we get our gold back!" Nami commanded.

"Huh?! Come on, Nami, I get that the gold is important, but we need to get out of here as soon as possible!" Zoro points out, "In case you've forgotten, we're in a MARINE base! We're on enemy grounds, and we're in a complete disadvantage. They have resources and planning that could take us down at any time. Longer we remain here, the higher the risk of us getting captured."

"As much as I hate to admit, Nami-san, but I agree with the moss-head." Sanji noted, "We need to get out of here right away."

"No! You don't understand!" The navigator points out, "This is gold we're talking about! More gold then my entire savings combined! There is no way we're leaving that behind!"

"No can do!" Luffy points out with a huff, "We're getting out of here! Captain's orders!"

"And I veto that order!" Nami cries out, "Luffy! Our gold was taken from us! What kind of pirates let their loot get stolen?!"

"Oh, you do have a point…"

"Aye-yae…" Leva slaps her palm on her face tiredly at how easy for our captain to be persuaded.

"Then, what now?" Chopper asked, "We can't just look around out in the open."

"We need a place to hide, somewhere the patrols would never consider looking for us…" I stated.

"How about an abandoned dock?" Robin suggested as she unrolls the parchment in her hands to show the map of the entire base, "There're plenty of them dotted around this place, abandoned when their manpower diminished."

"Oh! Robin, I love you so much!" Nami cheered.

"Wait! Where did you get map?!" Lance cried.

"And what do we do with them?" The archeologist asked, "If we let him go now, he'll probably tell his superiors about our plans. Do you want me to… make it painless for him?"

"You can toss us overboard." We all turned to the civilian woman with surprised expressions as she continues to explain, "If you do that, we can play it off as you not needing a hostage anymore and I could lead them off to a false lead."

"K-Kobato! W-What are you…?!"

"Lance-kun. They aren't bad people." She tells him, "And… I owe them a debt of gratitude."

"A-A debt…?"

"So, you're not going to say anything about their plans, got it?" She points her finger right in front of the officer's face, "And if any chance you try to do exactly that… well, I know where the broadcast room is and people would love some juicy intel on your past…"

"No…! Don't you even think about doing just that! I'll be the laughing stock of the base!"

"So…?"

"…Yes, I won't say anything…" The officer grumbled, "When did you get so confident…?"

"Let's just say… I've heard of a story."

"…Just be glad I love you so much, four-eyes…"

"Love you too, lazybutt."

Huh. So, they're in a relationship… should have seen that coming, with how intimate they refer to each other…

* * *

After tossing the two of them overboard as planned, we made it to an abandoned dock as of Nami directions with reference to Robin's map. Once we, read I, checked that there aren't any ambushes nearby, we all relaxed down as Sanji served us some leftovers from the Skypiean party, discussing on our next move.

"Even if we want to, we couldn't find out where they put it." Zoro pointed out.

"They would put it in a vault, obviously." Usopp stated.

"Yeah, but where would one be?" Sanji asked, "I don't think we've seen anywhere such a thing would be."

"How about here?" Robin points out on the map, a large empty area on the northwestern corner of the base, "There's a storage area here that requires several keys to open. A good place to store treasure than any other."

"Oh!"

"As expected of you, Robin-chwan~!"

"Yeah! That place definitely smells right!" Nami agrees, "Alright! We're heading there to get back our gold!"

"No, something isn't right." I pointed out, "That place would make it too obvious."

"So?"

"From what I gathered from the past few ambushes we have to deal with, the commander of this base isn't an idiot. No, he is smart, and he has plans written and laid out traps for us to stumble into."

"And your point is…?" Zoro asked confused.

"Think about it." I point at the storage area on the map, "If you're a commander of a base, and you're planning of safeguarding loot from high-profile pirates, would really hide it as such an obvious location?"

"Maybe…?" Usopp stated.

"No! You won't!" I declared, slamming my palm on the map, "I would use it to set up traps to snarl them up! Pull the carpet from under their feet, so to speak. No. If I were to protect such valuable goods, there's only one place I would put it."

"Where?"

I survey the map a little, before finding the spot and taps my fingertip on it for the crew to see, "Here! The last place anyone would consider looking. Right under my own nose."

"That place is… His office?" Sanji questioned, "Would he really do that?"

"It's a huge possibility." Robin agreed, "Vice-Admiral Jonathan is well-known to most for his tactical prowess, as much as his actual combat abilities. He would possibly undertake such a move to deal with us."

"But then, wouldn't he also ponder the possibility that his plans might fail?" Nami considers, "Then he would have truly place the treasure in the vault and use such a mindset to draw us into a trap at his office."

"Ah! Yeah, that too is possible…"

"What if Rein is right and we're walking into a trap?" Chopper asked.

"There's also the possibility of Rein getting it wrong too…" Zoro points out.

"A 50/50 chance…" Sanji noted.

"Why don't we split up?" Luffy suggested, "That way, we can cover both and if either one is a trap, we can deal with it!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…What?"

"I guess miracles really can happen…" Zoro muttered in surprise.

"He actually said something sensible for once…" Usopp noted.

"I take it such occurrences are rare?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, very rare." Nami nodded.

With our plans set, we went to divide ourselves out to three teams with the additional one to take back the Waver Nami left behind still hidden about. After a little discussing, we all divided as follows:

Waver Retrieval: Nami and Sanji, due to knowing the location and needing a guard.  
Gold Retrieval (Vault): Luffy, Zoro, Robin and Usopp, due to requiring two powerhouses to break through if the other two can't unlock it and the archeologist acting as their guide.  
Gold Retrieval (Office): Me alone, since I'm the only other person knows where the office is who are not in the other teams; and I have a good idea on how to get to his office undetected.  
Ship's Guard: Chopper and Leva, because we need the reindeer doctor unharmed in-case any of us suffers a dangerous wound and two people are better than one.

Once that is settled, with the Going Merry disguised as a Marine vessel with the use of some wood and paints, we all split off to our respective missions.

* * *

Night has fallen, the entire base is up at arms with spotlights shining down through the seawater lake. If anyone who dares sail about without caution will be spotted by them immediately.

And the parts of the lake that Jonathan's office overlooked is especially guarded well. This could possibly be the result of the Vice-Admiral anticipating us to charge in to get back our gold; or could be a standard procedure for them, I do not know.

Either way, it is no problem with me. As there is one place they overlooked. One place that they couldn't have be able to keep a lookout at all times.

Underwater.

Which resulted in me taking an underwater dive through the salty waters right under the lookout's noses. Among the crew, if I am to brag, I'm the best swimmer and the longest to hold their breath underwater. And my usual routine has always been to swim a few laps around the ship every morning, kicked in by Sen since we first met, so I am confident with my swimming skills.

That aside, using my Observation Haki as a form of sonar, I am able to dodge and hide from all the ships sailing about.

After a few meter of swimming, with a few peeks to the surface to check my bearings, I manage to get to an entrance into the base itself. From there, I would refer to the route drawn by Robin and traverse through the base to his office.

As I sneak about the corridors, I can't help but be unnerved by the lack of marines patrolling the hallways. The entire base is deserted, with only a few skittish marine soldiers patrolling about, possibly recruits fresh from boot camp.

What's the deal? This is rather risky move for Jonathan to play. This so unlike him to do as such.

But regardless, I went on with my mission; as I am soon a stairway away from my objective. But just as I am about to take the stairs up, I hear footsteps. Thinking fast, I round to a blind spot where anyone coming down or up will not see me, as a possibly high-ranked officer walked down the stairs in a fast trot.

Once he is out of view, I as quickly and quietly as possible, sneaks up the stairs where I got up the hallway. Just one lone stretch to his office-

"I was wondering who was sneaking about." The owner of the officer I'm about to infiltrate noted while standing there in front of me, "A pleasure to meet you, 'Dragon Princess' Rein."

…Can't anything go as planned for once…?

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **There! Part three done! This is taking longer than I have expected. I wasn't planning it to be this long. But this arc will soon reach its climax, and boy do I have plans for that!**

 **On another note, I like to ask you guys something. It was brought up by a review I got this morning, or evening depending on your time-zone comparatively to mine.**

 **Is this story getting… dull?**

 **I'm not here to judge anyone, people have differing attention spans and literary tastes, I get it. I just want to know if it is getting rather boring to some you.**

 **Nothing harmless, just wanting to know.**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	34. Ch 34:Commander of Navarone

**Chapter 34: Commander of Navarone**

* * *

Fuck my life. I should have considered this possibility! I'm such an idiot!

Jonathan is a VICE-ADMIRAL! There is no way he made it to that rank without having the capabilities to use any form of Haki, even if it's the most basic.

"I've got to admit, I never imagine someone among a pirate crew who is smart enough to come here to look for their gold." The commander noted with a chuckle, "Although, I was expecting perhaps Nico Robin would be the one have figure it out."

He knows Robin is here too?!

"From your expression, you probably didn't expect me to find out." Jonathan stated, "Even with her disguise, it isn't hard to figure out from her old wanted poster. Age that young girl up a bit, and you'll get her."

"…"

"Hmph. Not one for conversation, are you?"

"Not when someone is capable of killing me with relative ease is standing in front of me."

"Ah, I see." The vice-admiral nodded with understanding, "Although, I've got to admit. For a young lady like you to get a bounty that high, especially just a couple of months after your first, you got most of the marines intrigued and worried. Man, did the Fleet Admiral blew a fuse… Not to mention Admirarl Akainu…"

I let his talking fade to the background as I look around, navigating the area to find a way out of this mess. I could run back the way I came up but turning my back to him seems like the worst thing to do, even with my Observation Haki. Attacking him is also a bad idea considering his rank and possibly combat strength. Vice-Admirals aren't push-overs like the Captains…

God damn it, it's like Lance all over again!

"You know, I am curious about something." Jonathan suddenly said much to my confusion, "You seem like a reasonable person, and your captain doesn't have any intentions of attacking our base by the look of things. So then, why did you come here? What reasons do you guys have to invade Navarone?"

"Huh? Invade?" I guess that make sense to them, with us falling from the sky out of nowhere like that. Sky Island are rarest of the rare, after all. "We have no intentions to invade this place. It was a complete accident. We didn't even know this base existed on this part of the ocean."

"Oh, call me skeptical, but I find that truly unlikely." He stated with a tilt of his head, "Pirates have the tendency to lie to save their lives. I have personal experience of that."

"We're not lying!" I tell him, "We fell from the skies, I swear to god that is true!"

"Oh yeah, your crewmate said the same thing during our interrogations. That part I would believe considering the eye-witnesses, but that still doesn't explain the reasons for coming here." He stared at me, "But I can see that you are going to say the same thing no matter what I ask."

"So!" With a flick of a hand and a vision later, I manage to draw out Raitou to block a flying fishing hook that then wraps around the blade and with a mighty pull, pulls my sword right out of my hands sending it clanking on the ground in front of him, "I'll just have to take you in for a more… _effective_ questioning." He concluded with a smile patting his fishing rod, "No hard feelings."

I quickly got pull out my scabbard and got into a bastardized stance of my own sword techniques. This is going to hurt… a lot…

* * *

Nami took a look around their hiding spot behind some rocks. After finding her waver and knocking a few bumps onto the flirty cook's head, she and Sanji has started to made their way back towards the hidden docks as planned.

But along the way, they were nearly spotted by some patrolling ships that has came out of the docks a couple minutes earlier; much her confusion considering the last time she saw the ships they went off in the entire opposite direction.

"What's going on…?" She wonders, the slightly beaten cook slightly unconscious on the back of the waver, 'The increased marine soldiers mean that they know we are still in the base. But then why aren't there any chasing us?'

'This is too suspicious…'

"Nami-san." Sanji suddenly spoke up, "Let's regroup with Rein-chan."

"Huh? Rein? Why?"

"I have a bad feeling." The cook explained puffing out a cigarette smoke, "What if she made it to the office and indeed found the gold there? And… what if the one guarding it is…?"

"The commander!" Nami realized as she quickly rev-up the waver, "We need to hurry and find the others and regroup with her!"

"No need to. They will be heading there as well." He added on, "If it were me, I would too. No point in wasting time, after all."

"G-Good call! Alright, to the office then!"

With a press of the pedal, they speed off from their spot towards their next destination.

* * *

With the gold extraction team for the vault, they are currently running along the forested part of the base. The vault was a trap, like Rein has guessed, and they barely got out with their lives still intact thanks to the buffoonery of one very arrogant visiting commander.

And, just like Sanji had said, the other team has the exact same idea, except a little different…

"Robin, Usopp, head back to the Going Merry." Zoro ordered, "Have it sail around the main base."

"I take it we are in need of an escape vessel soon?" Robin noted.

"Yeah, considering the possibility." He noted, "Me and Luffy will head for the room. We'll be needed there for a fight."

"Alright! Let's do this!" Luffy declared, "Let's kick that old man's butt!"

With that confirmed, they split up as Luffy and Zoro charges forward towards where the office is.

Assuming they don't get lost along the way…

But we all know they will…

* * *

I barely dodged a strike to my head by the flying fishing hook before stepped in with swings my scabbard right into the commander's ribs, Jonathan blocking my attack with his fishing rod. He then pushes my sheath back before he pulls his rod back and my legs kicked forward without my command as I fall on my back, I quickly roll back onto my feet to avoid a stomp from him.

Damn, this guy's fighting style is tricky.

I knew he is tough, but I didn't think it was possible to fight with a fucking fishing rod!

He manages to keep me at a range with a begrudgingly amazing skillful use of his hook as a sort of rope dart-cum-morning star. Even when I am able to get close, he manages to knock me off my feet with that hook and presses me back to my original position.

All of that, while keeping Raitou at a perfect distance away from me and close to him.

Plus, he has never moved from that spot the whole time!

It somewhat pisses me off!

"For a young lady, you are quite the opponent." Jonathan commented, "But you can't beat me. Your reach is diminished without your sword, and it is obvious that I am the better fighter. Just give up. You are not getting back the gold."

Give up? Yeah, right! As if I will! He maybe has me at an impasse, but I know he isn't the better fighter. He always keeps me at the distance, and always presses me back every time I get close. It is obvious that he isn't that good in close combat, something that I somewhat excel in.

But even with that figured out, I still can get a good hit on him!

Damn it! That has to be a way past him! A way to knock him off long enough to get back Raitou and make a break for it for his office!

I barely regain my attention as I nearly got hit by his hook yet again, I knocking it away when it scrapped the tip of my nose. A few more strikes shoot toward me with his hook curving about like a goddamn snake, I barely able to dodge and block most his attacks with some grazing me leg and arm.

Then his hook manages to hook into my swimsuit's strap, pulling me towards him and I felt his palm slams into my face; I felt his firm grip as he pushes me down onto the ground, the back of my head hitting the concrete floor painfully. As my brain rattled in my skull, a pressure on my gut and neck along with a painful tap on my wrist that forces me to lose my grip on my scabbard have me pinned down.

He got me down and out.

"That took longer than I planned." The commander noted staring down from on top of me, "But that's one down."

"D-Damn it…" I was a fool to think he suck at close-combat. Of course, he'll have some method of taking down an opponent close-up! He's a goddamn Vice-Admiral! It is required for them!

"Relax. You won't be heading to prison alone." He stated, "All of your comrades will be captured soon. If my plans went off accordingly, we would have most of them in cuffs now."

*VROOM*  
*CLANK*

Was that… window breaking?

"That came from…" Jonathan muttered in surprise as he looks back, before I hear the door slams opened.

"Rein-chan!" Sanji called out, before I hear a little growl as well as I felt some pressure got off me as a black shoed-foot slams right into the commander, knocking him off of me. "Rein-chan! Are you alright?"

"Sanji? What are you…?" I looked at him as I got up, before a feeling of slight emptiness on my shoulder caught my attention, I look at it to see that the strap holding the right-side of my swimwear is torn off. Must have been when Sanji kicked him off me, his hook must have ripped it off, the front of my swimsuit flapping down slightly to show a small peek of my… tits… a slip of a nip visible.

I immediately punch the likely pervy-faced cook and quickly tied it up in a somewhat of a knot to keep my boobs at leasted covered, before grapping Raitou and dashing into the office just as I heard the sounds of fighting starting off behind me.

Entering the room, I witness our navigator already start to pack up our bundles of gold onto the back of the waver, "What are you waiting for?!" She cried out, "Get on! Let's get out of here!"

"Ah! R-Right!" I quickly get on to helping her, just as Sanji ran into the office with the sounds of gunfire echoing behind him.

"Break for it! Reinforcements are on the way!" He called out.

I, in response of what he said, grabbed the last bundle and leaped onto the waver getting a firm grip on Nami's shoulder; she automatically steps on the ignition and we all, including our cook who grabbed onto the bundle I'm holding, fly out of the broken windows and landing on the salty waters below with a large splash.

"Full speed!"

Nami slams down onto the pedal that propels us forward across the waters, I ducked down a little as I hear shouting from all over as bullets flew all over the air barely missing all of us.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked them.

"Sanji's decision!" Nami tells me as we swerve all about the waters dodging the bullets aimed at us, "And it looks like it's the right call!"

"Yeah, you guys saved my bacon!"

"Whenever a lady is in danger, you can call on me: White Knight Sanji~!" Sanji cooed, "How was it? Did my actions moved you?"

"Not even a slightest." I deadpanned, before hearing some fighting, as well as sensing two known auras, "It's Luffy and Zoro! They are on the metal bridge!"

"The one we destroyed?" Sanji asked seriously.

"The part leading from the docks!" I points at the direction of where I sensed them, sounds of fighting ringing out on the red stump of a bridge. Nami swerves our boat towards where I have pointed, as we are able to see the silhouettes of our two strongest fighters fighting it out against a squad of marines.

"Oi! Luffy! Moss-head!" Our cook called out, "What are you guys doing there?!"

"Ah! Sanji! Nami! Rein!" Luffy called out in surprise, "We were about to go to you guys!"

"You guys got the gold?!" Zoro asked as I witness him cut down the marine soldier in front of him.

"Yeah! All of it!" Nami called out, "We're on our way back now!"

"Need a lift?" I asked them.

"Appreciate it, but I doubt we all are able to fit on that." He points out. He has a point; the waver maximum passenger capacity is very limited. It's a one-seater after all, and just including me and Sanji along with the bundles of gold we have is already pushing it.

"You guys go on ahead!" Zoro shouts as he took down another marine soldier, "We'll circle around and catch up!"

"No way! You'll just get lost, moss-head!"

"What was that, love-sick cook?!"

"Argh! This is no time to argue!" I screamed at them, "Luffy! Grab onto Zoro, then onto me! We'll pull you guys along!"

"Okay!"

"Wait, what?!"

"Gum-Gum Grabbling Hook!"

As soon as Luffy's rubber hand grabbed onto my shoulder, I give out the command, "Floor it, Nami!"

"No need to ask that!" With that, she stomps on the ignition pedal and we blast forward at an accelerated pace with Luffy and Zoro at tow, a quick glance behind me to see the two of them dangling behind hazardously.

"Get the Pirates! Don't let them get away!"

We all brace ourselves as bullets dotted and flash all over the air, some coming quite close to hitting us. Thank god for the poor aiming of black-powder firearms. "Right! Let's head back to Merry!" Luffy declared, we all silently agreeing as we speed across the waters.

* * *

After that escapade, we manage to regroup with the rest of the crew on the disguised pirate vessel, miraculously without any of the marine ships' notice. And with that out of the way, once we make use of our disguise to buy us some time before ditching the entire cover once our navigator read the currents to pretty much throw more salt on the marine's wounds, we are now headed straight for the sea gate.

"Time to blow this joint!" Zoro noted.

"Any idea how to get out?" Usopp asked.

"It should be one straight path towards the sea gates from here." Nami stated studying Robin's stolen map, "We are riding on the one current that leads out of this base. It's smooth sailing from here on."

"As it would seem. Although…" Robin noted much to my confusion, "Don't you find it odd that no ship seems to be following us? In fact," She points out as we follow her finger to the few navy vessels chasing us that seems to be… dropping anchor? "They seem to be giving up."

"Huh? Why?" Our navigator wonders, before realizing, "You don't think…?"

"Another trap?!" Our sniper cried.

"Most likely." The archeologist agreed.

"Who cares about that!" Luffy shouted, "Full speed ahead!"

"…Hm? Hey guys!" Leva perks up from her position on the crow's nest, "Did you guys hear something?"

"Huh?" I strain my ear a bit to catch some of the noise. That sounds like… rushing water?

"That sounds like a river." Sanji commented.

"Wait, I thought this is one big lake." Usopp noted, "How did we end up in a river?"

"I-It can't be…!" Nami scans through the map again, before realizing in horror from what I can see, "Oh no… so that's why the base is designed like this!"

"What's wrong, Nami?" Zoro asked.

"I was wondering about the odd placement of the sea gate." She explained, "Why did they built it near shallow waters? Now it makes sense! That shallow area is the final hurdle, the very reason they built such a stronghold here! Whenever there's a low tide, the water level plummets and any ships unlucky enough to be in that area will be beached and stranded on a piece of ocean floor."

"Mother Nature's mouse trap." I summarized to us, "And we fell right into it."

"What do we do?!" Our sniper cried in horror.

"Straight on ahead!"

"Like we can, dumbass!" We all shouted at our idiot of a captain, just as the entire ship skids forward to our shock. The Going Merry shakes for a while as I can hear the clear sounds of wood grinding against the earth, I flinching as I hear the cracking of planks echoing from under deck which alerted our sniper who races below to try and fix up the problem along with most of our male members.

Soon enough, we skid to a stop, the sea-level has dropped down drastically that effectively beached our vessel on the rocky seafloor.

"We are safe for now." Robin points out, "The water level is low enough that we don't have to worry about the ship sinking until the next high tide."

"Yeah, but now we're now sitting ducks for them…" I stated, just as the spotlights shines down on us.

 _"Straw Hat Luffy! And his fellow crewmates!"_ Jonathan's voice echoed from the loudspeakers, _"Even among the Marines, this is a great stronghold, under the command of the G-8 Division. I congratulate you for fighting so well thus far. You possess admirable conviction and are worthy adversaries, but this is checkmate."_

" _Straw Hat Pirates! I think you understand your situation well. There is no hope of you escaping Navarone. Give it up! If you all surrender peacefully, we'll offer you a respectful proposition. You, Straw Hat Luffy, along with Roronoa and Rein are wanted criminals, so we have no choice but to turn you over to Marine HQ! But if you all give up now, we will assure you that no harm to be done to your crewmates!"_

" _HOWEVER! If you even attempt to escape… I might get a little angry~"_

We all thought about that message, the possibilities swirling in my head. What should we do? We are beached up on the seabed with a hole in the hull. I doubt we have the resources and time to patch it up right now!

"Guys!" Leva suddenly shouted out, "I have an idea!"

* * *

We all gathered on the deck in a circle as our newest crewmate starts to explain her plan to us.

"This! Is the answer!" She declared proudly as he shows us an Impact Dial, "This is a spare Impact Dial I've charged up when me and Chopper was on guard duty. I must have slammed my hammer into it at least a few dozen times with fully charged Jet Dials. I recon it might be enough to lift our ship off the ground!"

"Oh, that's great!" Usopp noted.

"I see. We might be able to get back into the open waters with it!" Nami noted.

"But we would need more than one shot." Sanji commented, "With that hole in the hull, we would sink the very moment we splash down."

"It would be nice if we can use that octopus-balloon again…" Robin pointed out.

"Yeah! That's a promising idea." Zoro agreed.

"If we use a couple of Flame and Breath Dials, we can inflate it back up again, right?" I pointed out.

"Yeah! That's a great idea!" Chopper nodded.

We all let out a cheerful laugh at the great idea, before reality slams us in the ass hard…

"If only we have that octopus…"

"The octopus, huh…"

"The octopus…"

"Yeah, the octopus…"

"Shitty octopus…"

"The octopus, yes."

"That damn octopus…"

"Goddamn octopus…"

"I have it."

"So he says…"

"He said he's got it."

"He has it?"

"Yeah, he has it."

"Shit, he has it?"

"He has it, does he?"

"Damn, you have it…?"

"Goddamn, really?"

"…Yeah! I have it right here with me!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

".."

"…"

…Wait a minute…

"WHAT?!"

We all stared at our captain in shock as he reaches into his pants of all places and pulls out that goddamn balloon octopus! "Here, see?"

"Why on hell do you have that on you?!" Nami shrieked.

"Well, y'know, he's like our savior who got us down from the sky safely."

"Yeah, but…" Zoro glanced down at where he took that eight-legged sea creature out from, "Doesn't it feel weird down there?"

"Down where?"

"Seriously…?" I groaned as Robin giggles in the background, "Well, at least that's one part of the equation solved. All that's left are…"

"A Flame Dial and Breath Dials…" Leva noted before thinking a little, "I think I still have some usable Breath Dials in my bag below deck… but I can't find any Flame Dials anywhere…"

"Oh! I was playing with it in the kitchen." Luffy noted pulling out said Dial from his pocket.

"WHY?!" She cried snatching the Dial out of his hand before turning to us, "I think I might be able to fix up my Impact Blunderbuss just enough for at least a few shots, but I need someone downstairs with me to help keep it steady. Never fired it downwards before and I'm rather… _small_ … so…"

"We got you." Zoro and Sanji noted.

"Then all that's left is to…"

* * *

We all finished up the preparation, rolled up the sails and has our Dials ready when needed. All that's left is for Leva to launch us upwards.

"Everything set up here!" I called out from on top the sails just as me and Usopp tied up the last of the ropes.

"Okay!" Nami called out before shouting down below deck, "Ready when you guys are!"

"Got it!" Leva and our monster trio called out before counting down.

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

I just barely managed to get back on the deck before with a distinct PING, Going Merry is thrusted upwards in a burst of kinetic energy. We nearly reach halfway up the cliff-face walls before we start falling back down again. Okay, time for phase two!

"Robin!" She nodded to my command before raising her arm up in her signature pose, "Tien Fleur!" Hands sprouts out overboard which then pulls the octopus and stretches it up above us, which then me and Nami turn on our Breath Dials and starts inflating the sea-creature up. But it is clearly not enough as we are still falling!

"Anytime now, Usopp!" Nami called out.

"Coming! Coming!" He cries out as he got up from his crash site near the cabin before running up with a Flame Dial at hand, blasting a burst of flame towards the sea creature.

Fly damnit… Fly! We are almost there! Just a little more…!

"FLY, GODDAMN IT!"

With that final push, the octopus is fully inflated, just as another impact shockwave blasts from below deck, launching us upwards once more; only this time, we are rising steadily with no danger of falling anytime soon! YES! WE ARE OUT OF HERE!

A small vision broke me out of my happy mood, although it is back again once I realized the contents of said vision. Soon enough, a missile flew right past us and slamming into one of the cannon silos in the cliff, basically giving us a direct route up and out of the base.

Thank you, Condoriano! Your sacrifice will not be forgotten!

As rising sun greeted us, we finally float right out of the marine base. As the rest of the crew called out their goodbyes (Just Luffy and Sanji), I collapsed down onto the deck with a sigh, "Ah… One heck of a day that was…" I moaned out tiredly, "Those in favor of never doing that again, says aye."

"Aye-aye." Everyone else agreed with me.

"At least we get to fly some more." Usopp noted happily, "Speaking of which, I would need to patch that hole up."

"Ah… but man, I'm starving." Luffy stated with a grin, "Sanji! Food!"

"Yeah, yeah, breakfast is on the way." The cook noted as he walks back to the cabin.

"That went as well as it could." Robin stated with a smile, "Never in my life would I expecting to escape a Marine Stronghold like this, not to mention the one that we fell right into unintentionally."

"That's the life of a Straw Hat Pirate." I tell her with a grin, "Trust me, it's going to get weirder soon enough. But, it would be worth it."

She looked at me for a moment, before giving me the same plastic, yet not plastic, smile, "I look forward to it."

…

 _To be continued…_

* * *

 **THERE! FINALLY, FINISHED! Damn, this arc took a long while to write! With all the changes I have made as well as a few adjustments to the previous chapter to smooth things out a bit, this arc ended up far longer than I anticipated.**

 **But finally! It is done!**

 **Hopefully, I managed to write Jonathan well enough. He is the last person I would have any idea on how to write, with the little screen time he got in the entire series.**

 **Now, with this out of the way… it's time for the dreaded… DAVY BACK FIGHT ARC… *sigh* Goda, give me strength…**

 **With that, I thank you for reading this!**


	35. Author's Note

**Author's Note**

 **Okay sorry for not updating this story in a long while. Just have a few reviews that seems to open my eyes a little on how I'm writing this fic.**

 **Most of them are usually on how I open this fic up, on the first few chapters and how I deal with the whole gender bender issues. Mostly, I ignore them as I believe I did alright, but after more reviews talking about the same thing as well as criticizing how I have handled it, I decided a change is in order.**

 **I'm going to re-write the entire fic from scratch, an entire reboot of the entire fic.**

 **There are going to be some major changes to this fic, mostly with how I am going to settle with the major complain on how I have dealt with the genderbending issue as well as how certain events AREN'T going to happen at all.**

 **So, sorry for not posting in a while, I have a lot to think about as well as starting a new fic in the** **Fastest Hero Academia** **, but I will begin work on the new fic as soon as I am able.**

 **For those who have followed this fic this far, I'm sorry if I'm disappointing you by discontinuing this one to reboot it entirely, but reassure; I would leave this fic here as it is. Not deleting this fic ever so you might have a base to compare.**

 **With that out of the way, now to the changes I am going to implement.**

 _1: Make Rein's figure a little less erotic, maybe give him/her small chest and hips and more of a boxer-like than supermodel._

 _2: Deal with the genderbending issue. So yes, this is a given, but I'm going to give it a try. Hope for the best for it!_

 _3: Change her fighting style, mostly the same but a little less strong attacks like Zoro's; maybe her weapon could use a change._

 _4: Will remain M-rated, so there will be some lemons and limes, but I'm not going to force it in as I did previously._

 _5: Keep the rape-y scenes to a minimum, if remove them entirely. Not too sure about this one, but a lot of people really hate this…_

 _There, these are some of the major changes that are going to happen. There are obviously going to be more, but I don't want to spoil you now do I?_

 **On another note, I have plans on rewriting my RWBY fic too, given if I have the chance and the time to do as such. When that is happening is depending on the future Volumes as… you know, things are a little… bad as of late. Maybe I'll make an AU version of it…**

 **Oh, one last thing. This has been on my mind for a while now but… how do you guys think of a lemon-only one-shots-only fic for this? The reboot included, of course, but that's completely up in the air. I have quite a few steamy scenes in my perverted of a mind for a long of… you know… but if you think that is too much, let me know.**

 **With that, sorry for discontinuing, and hope to see you all at the reboot when it comes out.**


End file.
